Residents of Toronto’s Church and Wellesley Village gathered in protest over the weekend to express concerns over growing rates of violence and harassment in the neighbourhood.
Locals and business owners rallied peacefully on Saturday, urging the government at all levels to expedite new safety measures.
Residents in the Church and Wellesley area have reported seeing a steady upturn in violence. Many say this is due to unhoused and vulnerable residents relying on The 519 community centre.
The 519 is a vital resource serving members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community. It offers a range of services from early age education programs to financial and housing, to programming for seniors and a plethora of other community groups.
Paul Saguil, Chair of the Board of The 519 told Now Toronto that “decades of chronic underfunding of social/health services, housing, and other supports, have led to incredibly complex challenges in the Village and across Toronto.”
Saguil reaffirmed The 519’s commitment to working with its “neighbours, service partners, and the city” to implement “equitable solutions to community safety and wellbeing issues.” Which includes investments in mental health, addictions and affordable housing, he said.
But some locals say The 519’s adjoining park has become a hotbed for drug use, and is jeopardizing the safety of passersby and the ability of businesses to stay afloat.
Steve Dawson, owner of the nearly century-old Dudley’s Hardware, said he is being forced to close down as staff are being repeatedly harassed, and recurring acts of vandalism prove too costly to keep repairing.
In an open letter to Steve Clark, Ontario’s minister of municipal affairs and housing, MPP for Toronto Centre, Kristyn Wong-Tam, blamed the provincial government’s long-standing oversight on the “overlapping crises of chronic homelessness, untreated mental health and addictions and a failed justice system,” for the neighbourhood’s deterioration.
Here's the interview with MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam. They initially didn't want to do an interview, but if you're an elected official at a protest/event, where people are calling your leadership in question, we have to ask questions. pic.twitter.com/91m3lyBGIV
— Ahmar Khan (@AhmarSKhan) July 22, 2023
Their letter puts forward a number of requests, including to fully fund the provincial responsibilities in the city’s upcoming mental health and addiction strategy, new supportive housing and addiction treatment beds, and funding for Toronto’s shelter system to meet the demand for shelter beds.
Currently, Toronto’s shelter system is operating beyond its capacity. But Wong-Tam says implementing “real bail reform” as a means to keep violent criminals who pose a threat to the community and small businesses off the streets is a step in the right direction.
