There were mixed reactions in a Hamilton City Council meeting today, after the amount of money the city is spending on homelessness supports was revealed.
The city says $170 million of its budget this year is going to housing and homelessness supports, with the city having to cover 70 per cent of the costs.
That leaves Hamilton tax payers to foot a $119 million bill.
This is a big jump from last year, when the city was paying a little over half of the $147 million costs.
The provincial government gave $28.6 million to Hamilton’s housing and homelessness prevention program this year, which Ward 9 Councilor Brad Clark says is “frustrating.”
“…we are going beyond our ability to pay to help the homeless, because the federal and provincial governments are not,” Clark said.
According to the most recent data, more than 1,500 people are experiencing homelessness in Hamilton, and province-wide data indicates 234,000 Ontarians are homeless.
Mayor Andrea Horwath has directed city staff to look into sanctioned outdoor encampment sites, though she acknowledges it’s not a long-term solution.
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