Toronto

Bylaws and Encampment History

The City of Toronto Municipal Code currently prohibits encampments in parks through the following provisions:

• § 608-13. Camping and lodging: Unless authorized by permit, no person shall dwell, camp or lodge in a park. 

• § 608-14. Tents and structures: Unless authorized by permit, no person shall place, install, attach or erect a temporary or permanent tent, structure or shelter at, in or to a park. 

In March 2020, at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a moratorium was placed on encampment evictions in parks. In October of that year, the moratorium was lifted. An application for an interlocutory injunction, which would have prevented enforcement of these bylaws for the duration of the pandemic, was ultimately unsuccessful.

In July 2021, Toronto police spent over $2m to violently evict encampment residents in Trinity Bellwoods Park, Alexandra Park, and Lamport Stadium Park. This works out to a cost of over $33,000 per person evicted. Of the 65 residents evicted from the park, only 27 of them were staying in City shelters by September of that year. Due to the severity of violence inflicted on encampment residents, the City of Toronto eventually requested its Ombudman prepare a report and reccomendations.

That report, Investigation into the City's Clearing of Encampments in 2021, was published in spring 2023 and concluded that the City "chose expediency over the needs of the individual" and "showed a lack of commitment to honouring its pledge to a human rights approach".

The Current Encampment Eviction Process

The City of Toronto carries out encampment evictions under both its Parks Bylaw, and the Trespass to Property Act. The process for the Trespass to Property Act is detailed below.

Process Under The Trespass to Property Act

City Staff from Municipal Licensing and Standards, and Corporate Security, proactively monitor parks to scan for encampments, alongside on-site and mobile security teams. When a security guard who is not City Staff notices an encampment, they do not approach the area, but contact the Encampment Office within the City. 

When the Encampment Office is notified, it will send outreach teams to the encampments, consisting of by-law officers to informally notify the resident that they are in violation of parks bylaws, and outreach workers from Shelters to Homes to engage with encampment residents, including offering referrals for indoor accomodation. Security staff do not accompany outreach workers. Notably, an offer for referral to a shelter does not necessarily mean the shelter has enough spaces for the encampment resident(s).

If a resident accepts a referral, the City will occasionally call a taxi to transport them to the shelter. 

If a resident does not accept a referral, even when shelter spaces are full, they are either immediately, or sometime later, given a written trespass notice, and ordered out of the park within a certain time period. This period can range from a few days to 30 minutes. Police are occasionally present when trespass notices are issued. If the encampment is still present at the end of that the time period contained on the trespass notice, bylaw officers will confiscate and destroy the tent and belongings, and the residents are occasionally arrested.

If a resident is not home when a bylaw officer visits, a trespass order is issued, and in many cases the tent is dismantled and belongings destroyed before the resident returns home.

The "Dufferin Grove" Model - A  Housing First Approach

Since August 2021, a housing-first model has been utilized in Dufferin Grove Park. As of late 2022 it is also being used in Allan Gardens. The approach avoids evictions and issuance of trespass notices, in favour of an approach to find permanent housing and shelter options that meet the specific needs of individuals in encampments, as well as wrap-around, client-centred case management supports to people living outdoors.

The following are features of the approach:

• Provision of onsite services including physical and mental health care, harm reduction initiatives (education and safe supplies), social services (identification and income support), referrals to meal programs and indoor shelter spaces, daytime drop-in options, housing supports, and fire safety information.

• Partnerships with community workers and and other advocates, to meet specific needs of individuals in encampments. 

• Non-deployment of bylaw officers (in Allan Gardens, however, security guards still patrol the area to monitor the number of encampments and call Toronto Police if any illegal activities are occurring in the park).

• In Allan Gardens, an Information & Help Centre has been deployed on the south-east side of the park, and serves as a nexus for ongoing outreach efforts and as a resource for neighbors and community members to seek information and ask questions. 

Notably, the Dufferin Grove model is not yet a formal City policy, and remains used only in the two parks noted above.