Encampments full of drug-addicted residents have returned to one problem Toronto park, which was the subject of two eviction attempts during the Covid pandemic, one of which resulted in violence and several arrests.
Lamport Stadium Park, which is in Toronto’s trendy Distillery District, is now home to at least 30 tents and an equal number of seemingly drug-addicted and abusive residents.
The tents are mostly scattered on the same street – Fraser Ave. – as one of the city’s respite shelters, one that has been marred with controversy ever since it opened in the heart of Liberty Village in 2018.
Lawlessness and violence ensued and during the pandemic, a sizable Tent City cropped up in the park.
In late September of 2020, the Lamport Square encampment of about 15 tents was removed, only to return a few months later with more tents and more aggressive residents.
In late July of 2021, the police and city of Toronto staff were needed to remove 30-odd structures along with knives, an axe, a hatchet and propane tanks. Police were called when homeless industry activists tried to barricade the park. A total of 26 protesters were arrested, some for criminal offences.
When I ventured down there Tuesday, some of the latest crop of residents screamed obscenities at me for taking pictures of their tents (not them) – as is increasingly the habit nowadays.
They shouted that they deserved privacy as if it was their right to squat in a public park.
Ditto for Allan Gardens, which I visited in May, and which has now become a Shantytown full of tents, a large teepee and several sacred fire sites (the latter sanctioned by City Hall).
It has become a no-go zone for the public.
When I visited there, two burly homeless men tried to chase after me for taking pictures of the chaos, their aggressiveness and obscenities likely fueled by the “treatment” they received at a nearby safe injection site.
In beautiful St. James Park, the three tents that have taken up residence – near a playground and in the midst of a dog walking area – have become the subject of a heated debate on a St. Lawrence Neighbourhood online Facebook group,
It is interesting to note that a selection of progressives in that group has endeavoured to bully those who’ve expressed dismay at the collection of garbage from the squatters and the tents.
The residents were far quieter than those at Lamport Stadium Park when I visited there Tuesday.
That notwithstanding, the city’s parks bylaw states in Section 608-13 that “no person shall dwell, camp or lodge in a park.”
Section 608-14 says no person shall “place, install, attach or erect a temporary or permanent tent, structure or shelter at, in or to a park.”
There are also rules against lighting, building, use or stoking an “open fire.” But I guess city officials, in an attempt to pander to the Indigenous, have decreed that sacred fires are safe.
Not that they are.
My point is, the rule of law clearly does not apply in the city of Toronto when it comes to allowing the homeless and addicted to squat, drink and take drugs in public parks – and intimidate those lawful citizens who just want to enjoy the outdoors.
In years gone by, the pandemic was blamed for the Tent Cities. Now city officials and activists claim there are not enough shelter spaces with the number of asylum seekers flooding into Toronto.
There is a solution besides clearing the parks of illegal campers. Our politicians can say a “hard no” when it comes to accepting more asylum seekers. Other cities and towns should be required to absorb their share.
But the leftists won’t and new Mayor Olivia Chow certainly won’t.
The influx of migrants represents yet another opportunity to expand the homeless industry.
In fact, there was no shortage of back-patting Wednesday as Chow’s proposal to expand shelter beds by 250 got unanimous council consent.
I’m willing to bet that even with the number of new spaces, the encampments will continue to grow and flourish.
What better way for Chow and her NDP activists to grandstand for more money than to have their homeless props occupying our parks?
The rights of law-abiding citizens be damned.
