To the Editor,
Coun. Brian Hamilton’s recent letter outlines broad ambitions and hopeful rhetoric about Thunder Bay’s homelessness strategy. What it fails to address is the real and immediate harm that will result from placing a high-density, temporary shelter village at 114 Miles Street East — in the heart of a fragile downtown already saturated with social services.
Yes, Thunder Bay faces a housing crisis. Yes, it takes time to build real housing. But in the meantime, the city has chosen to concentrate vulnerable individuals in what is essentially a cluster of sheds on a parking lot, not as an act of compassion, but of convenience. Let's be clear. This is not the only site available, and the public was told the matter was settled when council voted it down and ratified their decision last fall.
The 80-unit temporary village plan may be part of a broader 10-point strategy, but no strategy is just if it burdens one community repeatedly while sparing others. Coun. Hamilton represents McKellar Ward, which includes the Miles Street site. A site that 100 per cent of the members of the Fort William BIA disagreed with last November and successfully advocated against without his support. It is deeply concerning that instead of creating balanced solutions across Thunder Bay, he continues to promote a plan that undermines his own constituents and the small business community striving for revitalization.
Let’s stop pretending this location is a shared solution. It is a localized sacrifice, and the people living and working in Fort William deserve better than recycled decisions and brushed-aside concerns.
Lori Paras,
Thunder Bay
