St. Catharines city council agreeing the homeless camps must be solved first
Bit of a wrench thrown into plans to add recreational amenities worth $12-million at Lakeside Park in St. Catharines.
Councillor Bruce Williamson noted there's a number of homeless tents and wooden pallets.
He likes the city's plans to build, but he has reservations. "Spending a lot of money, and putting amenities in the park is not going to be a solution to the encampment problem. I think we have to deal with the encampment problem first, before we initiate. And there's lots of elements I do like."
Councillor Carlos Garcia like the idea of solving the problem first, along with council and Mayor Mat Siscoe.
"I would suggest that that would have to be the case. We can add it as an explicit addition, councillor. I would argue that nothing can happen until those camps are resolved, so that's a fair comment."
City council approved the work also for John Page park, including skateboard park, splash pad, multi-use courts, tennis courts, and more.
Council also approved getting the work done quicker, in 5 to 6-years, as opposed to 10, but they must deal with the homeless problem first.
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