The tent encampment taking shape on the Chatham water treatment plant green space has sparked pushback from people and businesses in the neighbourhood.
There are currently 80,000 homeless people in Ontario.
As of July 28, there were 242 known homeless people in Chatham-Kent.
Rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Chatham-Kent has gone up 82 per cent since 2018, with asking rent at $1,700 a month.
Every month an estimated 33 people fall into homelessness in C-K, but only 19 exit.
There were 39 stayers in the Victoria Park Place shelter overnight July 28, with 44 beds available.
There are currently 10 homeless encampments in Chatham-Kent.
Chatham-Kent has a number of housing projects in the pipeline, including supportive housing and deeply affordable housing.
Chatham-Kent communications manager Eric Labadie said a Let’s Talk CK page will be dedicated to addressing concerns around the Grand Avenue East encampment.
As of July 28, Chatham-Kent police had responded to 143 calls at the Grand Avenue encampment, with 72 of those being reactive. Nine arrests have been made.
Chatham-Kent Public Utilities Commission general manager Darren Galbraith said security has been stepped up around the water treatment plant in order to prevent any threat to the water supply.
In 2024, Hope Haven had 30,000 visits to its Chatham facility.
An 1,840-signature petition asking Chatham-Kent to relocate the Grand Avenue East encampment to better access service for the homeless was received by council July 28.
