Haley Bateman says local government is responsible for a shelter, not the province
A Niagara Regional councillor is not happy the provincial government stopped a homeless shelter from going in on Bunting Road.
Haley Bateman wonders where people needing help will go, after MPP Sam Oosterhoff says the province called it off after resident concerns.
She says Oosterhoff has never been to a regional council meeting. "I reached out to him about this, he has not called me back. We were at a conference together, he didn't make time for me. This is just about whatever pressures they were getting from the public, and I was getting those calls too, and I had many hours of calls with people."
She says regional staff worked hard to find a spot. "I have a shelter in my neighbourhood, I have people going through my garbage every single week. The Avondale is surrounded by people who are not unhoused."
She says they won't stop fighting for a shelter.
The councillor adds local government is responsible. "An unfair move for people to go right to the Premier, to skip me, to skip anyone elected locally to represent them, I think it was unfair not to go to the region directly."
She says anyone can become homeless, and die. "Three people recently died, one was in his early 20s, he was a hockey player, with his life ahead of himself, somehow he found himself in this position."
She chastized the Ford government, saying it bullied people into poverty.
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