Fighting for Safe Shelter

The Ontario Superior Court ruled that the City of Toronto failed to comply with a settlement agreement it had signed with our coalition, had not created physical distancing between beds, nor had made best efforts to do so.

Justice Sossin confirmed in his judgment that “any failure by the City to take all reasonable steps to meet physical distancing standard in congregate shelter settings heightens an already significant risk of the spread of COVID-19 to some of the most vulnerable members of our society.”

The Court was critical of the City’s interpretation of physical distancing requirements, as these were decided upon “without the benefit of public health guidance”. It ordered the City to obtain such guidance and to share the results with the coalition that started the legal challenge. The decision also requires the City to resume its regular reporting to the coalition about its progress in achieving physical distancing in shelters.

“It is clear from the court decision that the City needs to do a better job protecting people in shelters from COVID-19 transmission,” said Fareeda Adam of the Black Legal Action Centre. “651 people who use shelters have contracted COVID- 19 and four people have died. We know that this virus disproportionately impacts Black, Indigenous and other racialized communities, as well as people living with disabilities, and these communities are also overrepresented amongst shelter residents.”

“The Court’s decision confirms the Coalition’s position that the City has not done enough to reduce the risks of COVID transmission within Toronto’s shelter system, and that the City’s assertion of compliance with physical distancing standards was premature,” said Jessica Orkin, legal counsel to the applicants. “Justice Sossin’s judgment will ensure that going forward, decisions about physical distancing within the shelter system are based upon evidence-based guidance from independent public health experts.”

“We are pleased that the Court agreed with us that the City’s obligations under the settlement agreement remain in force, and highlighted the importance of ongoing vigilance and monitoring of the City’s adherence to its legal commitments,” said Noa Mendelsohn Aviv of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. “With rising COVID-19 counts, we are concerned about people who use shelters, people who work at shelters, and the whole community.”

“This case highlights the need to be vigilant about protecting the health of people who use shelters,” said Senior Staff Lawyer at Aboriginal Legal Services Emily Hill. “Our goal is to keep Indigenous people and communities safe from the spread of COVID-19.”

“As the second wave of Covid-19 is well under way and first snow could fly any day, it is urgent and vital that the City of Toronto finally and fully provide appropriately physically distanced shelter space for its poorest residents,” said Doug Johnson Hatlem, street pastor with Sanctuary Ministries of Toronto. “Hundreds of those residents remain outdoors in tents or otherwise sleeping rough due to legitimate fears of contracting a deadly and highly contagious disease, and because the shelters are crowded and full.”

“It’s important to remember that shelters are a band-aid solution. From a health perspective, the real focus should be moving people into adequate and permanent housing,” said Kenneth Hale, legal director at the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario.

The City of Toronto breached the agreement to protect those experiencing homelessness, and we are taking them back to court on Oct 1. In its written legal argument, the Coalition relies on emails and other documents it obtained through the court process to show that that senior managers within the City’s Shelter Support & Housing Administration had actual knowledge on June 15 that the City was not in compliance with its obligation under the Agreement. Nevertheless, on June 15, the City asserted to the Coalition that it had achieved 100% compliance with physical distancing requirements across the shelter system. “The City of Toronto has breached its legal obligations to protect our most vulnerable residents. So far, there have been 45 COVID-19 outbreaks in the Toronto shelter system, 649 people who use shelters have contracted COVID- 19 and four people have died, and we are all now bracing for winter and the second wave” says Doug Johnson Hatlem of Sanctuary Ministries of Toronto. “The evidence in this case provides a troubling behind-the-scenes look into the City’s mishandling of COVID-19 in its homeless shelters.”

“Justice demands that all Toronto residents be protected from COVID – all the more so those who are most vulnerable.” – Noa Mendelsohn Aviv, CCLA’s Equality Director

The City of Toronto has now delivered its first progress report, as required by the settlement reached with our Coalition (Sanctuary, ACTO, ALS, BLAC, CCLA and HALCO) in response to our lawsuit about the overcrowding in shelters during Covid. As part of the settlement, the City must provide regular reports about its physical distancing efforts within the shelter system, including capacity and occupancy numbers at the different sites. The settlement also authorizes our Coalition to question the City about its reports, and requires the City of Toronto to provide meaningful responses.

The City of Toronto has finally committed to creating and maintaining critical physical distancing standards across its shelter system. Last month, CCLA with a coalition of frontline homelessness service providers and human rights groups filed a lawsuit against the City and the Province of Ontario for failing to urgently protect the lives of those experiencing homelessness during the pandemic. The coalition is pleased to announce that an interim agreement has been reached with the City that will protect the lives of shelter residents but also the health of shelter employees and the public at large.

CCLA and coalition partners including Sanctuary Ministries of Toronto, Aboriginal Legal Services, Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario, Black Legal Action Centre, and HIV & AIDS Legal Clinic Ontario, have filed a constitutional and human rights challenge against the City of Toronto.

With other organizations worried about the health of our most vulnerable, CCLA wrote a letter to the city demanding immediate action to ensure appropriate physical distancing. 

CCLA wrote to the Mayor and Council of Toronto setting out in clear terms the need for housing, for safe non-congregate shelter spaces, and for appropriate physical distancing for homeless individuals.