Canadian cities are facing a homelessness crisis. In an effort to make progress on homeless shelters and housing, a group of activists has called on Regina City Council to ban NIMBYism from its meetings.
“Not In My Backyard,” or NIMBY, is a term used by some advocates to describe people who do not want things like public housing, homeless shelters, or safe injection sites near their homes.
These beliefs were on full display at a Regina city council meeting in June, where the location of an emergency shelter was debated for hours. The project met with both support and opposition from the community.
Dustin Plett, a Saskatchewan United Party candidate and landlord, pleaded with city council, saying he owns two rental properties just metres from the proposed shelter site and raised concerns about crime and drugs.
Plett complained that he had just purchased two more lots and wanted to build another 24 units, but that would not be the case if the city went ahead with the proposed site.
The city council ultimately changed its mind and voted against the possible location of the emergency shelter, which caused anger among the other city councilors who supported the project.
Ward 1 councillor Cheryl Stadnichuk and Ward 3 councillor Andrew Stevens listen to a delegation during a Regina City Council meeting on June 11, 2024. (Alexander Quon/CBC)
Third District Councilman Andrew Stevens, whose district includes the North Central neighborhood where the homeless shelter would have been located, said, “I think we look like a bunch of idiots overall.”
District 6 Councilman Dan LeBlanc said, “If we had a book about how this council deals with homelessness, it would be called ‘Thoughts and Prayers.'”
A new possible location will be presented to the city council in September.
CBCs Blue sky The show dug deeper into this topic last Wednesday, speaking with an anti-NIMBY activist, a homeowner, a city councilman and an expert who, after researching NIMBYism, says she’s not a fan of the term.
A petition to ban NIMBYism
Florence Stratton says she is one of 121 people who signed the petition dropped off at Regina City Hall on Wednesday. She says NIMBYism is a form of discrimination.
The petition’s goal is to ban NIMBY-style language or comments when discussing issues such as homelessness, shelters or public housing. Stratton said the June council meeting included “derogatory comments about homeless people” and claims that the shelter would bring more crime and vandalism to the area and drive down real estate prices – all comments she categorizes as NIMBYism.
Stratton cited the Ontario Human Rights Commission, which states that NIMBYism is a human rights issue and “happens when people have negative attitudes or stereotypes about those living in social housing or shelters.”
Stratton said the homelessness crisis compelled her to start the petition.
“I am appalled that in this rich city, in this rich province, in this rich country, there is even a single homeless person,” Stratton said.
“What is wrong with us? There is suffering out there on the streets and we act like we are, you know, the status quo or the established society, we act like they are a danger to us when in reality they are in danger.”
When asked how she would feel if the tables were turned and an emergency shelter was about to be built in her own neighborhood, Stratton said she would welcome it.
Ultimately, for Stratton, emergency accommodation is just a “stopgap measure.” She hopes something more permanent will be done in the future, like housing.
She said if the city can consider spending over $100 million on a new aquatic center, then it should be able to do the same to end homelessness.
Saskatoon’s fight against NIMBYism
Finding and deciding on emergency shelter is not a problem limited to Regina, as Saskatoon is also struggling with similar problems.
In February, Saskatoon City Council rejected plans for an emergency shelter in the Sutherland neighbourhood. At that meeting, council passed a motion requiring all future emergency shelters to be built at least 250 metres from elementary schools.
Some residents and business owners expressed concerns about the potential negative impacts the shelter could have at the proposed Sutherland location. Some pointed to reports of problems in the Fairhaven neighborhood, where a 106-bed shelter is located.
Third District Councilman David Kirton is a strong supporter of the Fairhaven shelter, but he says 106 beds is too many because it is “unsustainable.” He also says Fairhaven residents’ concerns are valid.
The proposed home in Saskatoon’s Sutherland neighbourhood was chosen because it offers 30 beds for people with complex needs. Two neighbourhood information sessions about the proposed home planned for this week have already been postponed twice. (Pratyush Dayal/CBC)
Kirton expressed frustration with the 250-meter rule, saying it limits the locations where the city can build a shelter and makes it difficult to find another one.
“There were people from the Fairhaven neighborhood who actually protested against the animal shelter in Sutherland,” Kirton said on Blue sky.
“So there is not only NIMBYism, but also ‘not in anybody’s backyard’, and that worries me greatly.”
Kirton expressed hope that the city could find another location for the shelters before winter, as all shelters are currently full.
Legitimate concerns and NIMBY label
Crime or the increasing drug use in the area are common issues raised by people like Plett or by residents and business owners who show up at council meetings to protest against the construction of temporary shelters in their area.
These concerns are justified, says Erin Dej, associate professor in the Department of Criminology at Wilfred Laurier University, where she has been researching homelessness for 15 years and NIMBYism in particular for the last four years.
Dej is not a big fan of the NIMBY label, a realization she came to while doing research in various communities in Ontario.
“When they’re labeled NIMBY, they immediately go into defense mode,” Dej said. “So sometimes when we use the term NIMBY, we may be ignoring legitimate concerns.”
“I don’t think we should throw the baby out with the bathwater. That doesn’t mean that emergency shelters can’t go there, that doesn’t mean we can’t provide those services, that just means we need to work together to find a way to provide housing.”
Dej also spoke about the fear of crime in the neighborhood, saying that crime already exists. If done right, she argues, a shelter with the right services and resources can actually help alleviate that crime and worry.
Many of the crimes around shelters that people are concerned about are what Dej calls “survival crimes,” such as theft of bicycles, propane tanks, etc.
“If we could prevent and end homelessness, these crimes wouldn’t exist. They’re happening specifically because people are homeless now, and that’s why we need to address homelessness in general.”
