The occupation of Allen Gardens in downtown Toronto is living proof that the city does not have homeless problem.
It has a drug problem.
While there were more than enough shelter beds (according to the city’s own bed count from the first week of June) to accommodate those squatting in the downtown park, it seems a group of drug addicts and Indigenous have opted to take over Allen Gardens this summer.
They are mere steps away from an injection site and a church that caters to the homeless, making it far easier to sleep rough.
They have pitched their tents strategically throughout the main part of the park so well that it is near impossible for families and others to enjoy it.
Judging from the frosty reception — bordering on abuse — True North’s Sue-Ann Levy received while walking through there, there’s a reason that the city of Toronto is paying for four security guards to monitor the site 24-7.
This is what it has come to: A loud drug and poverty industry that enables them to remain there and a city that pays for security instead of simply removing them to shelters.
While not the only encampment in this country, Allen Gardens is yet another sign of the decay in Canada’s major cities run by self-described progressive politicians who’d sooner turn a blind eye to the mess than make tough decisions.
Sue-Ann Levy reports.
