Community Services Committee

Minutes

Meeting #:
4
Date:
Time:
-
Location:
Champlain Room, 110 Laurier Avenue West, and by electronic participation
Present:
  • Chair Laura Dudas, 
  • Vice-Chair Jessica Bradley, 
  • Councillor David Brown, 
  • Councillor Marty Carr, 
  • Councillor David Hill, 
  • Councillor Theresa Kavanagh, 
  • Councillor Rawlson King, 
  • Councillor Wilson Lo, 
  • Councillor Stéphanie Plante, 
  • and Councillor Ariel Troster 
Absent:
  • Councillor Steve Desroches 

Notices and meeting information are attached to the agenda and minutes, including: availability of simultaneous interpretation and accessibility accommodations; in camera meeting procedures; information items not subject to discussion; personal information disclaimer for correspondents and public speakers; notices regarding minutes; and hybrid participation details.


Accessible formats and communication supports are available, upon request.


Except where otherwise indicated, reports requiring Council consideration will be presented to Council on Wednesday, July 12, 2023 in Community Services Committee Report 4.


The deadline to register by phone to speak, or submit written comments or visual presentations is 4 pm on Monday, June 26, 2023, and the deadline to register to speak by email is 11:00 am on Tuesday, June 27, 2023.

Marek Holke (Lifesaving Society Ontario) addressed the Committee and was pleased to award the Jocelyn Palm Cup and Cochrane Cup to the City of Ottawa.

No Declarations of Interest were filed.

File No. ACS2023-CSS-GEN-006 – City-wide

Clara Freire, General Manager, Community and Social Services, Paul Lavigne, Director, Housing, and Kale Brown, Manager, Homelessness Programs and Shelters, presented an overview of the report recommendations and answered questions from the Committee.  A copy of the slide presentation is filed with the Office of the City Clerk.

Dan Chenier, General Manager, Recreation, Cultural and Facility Services Department, was also in attendance and answered questions.

No correspondence was received on this item. Peter Tilley (Ottawa Mission, speaking notes on file) and Kaite Burkholder Harris (Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa), spoke at Committee on this item.

After discussions, the Committee gave the direction below, and considered the motion and report recommendations as follows:

Direction to Staff (Councillor R. King)

Regarding the City’s Integrated Transition to Housing Strategy, if the option of semi-permanent shelter is being considered, staff be directed to review and identify the exact locations of where any semi-permanent shelters may be erected on city-owned land and inform Committee of these locations. 

And if feasible, that this report be included as part of regular updates in the implementation of the Strategy up to and including further refinement of medium to long-term initiatives that will be brought forward in Q2 2024.

  • Report Recommendations

    That the Community Services Committee recommend that Council:

    1. Approve the Integrated Transition to Housing Strategy to support the single adult community shelter system over the longer-term, and delegate authority to the Director, Housing Services to implement the Strategy in collaboration with community partners.
    2. Approve the Enhanced Housing Allowance for Singles prototype as outlined in this report, and delegate authority to the Director, Housing Services, to work with community partners to refine the overall program and determine the formula to calculate the benefit offered, to support the transition of shelter and Physical Distancing Centre clients to long-term housing.
    3. Receive for information purposes the factors and considerations for choosing City recreation and/or community centres to be used as short-term centres opened to respond to emergencies in the Housing and Homelessness Sector, in the future, if required.
    4. Delegate authority to the General Manager, Community and Social Services to adjust the Strategy outlined in this report provided that adjustments are in keeping with the intention of the Strategy as well as City policies and bylaws, in order to quickly respond to factors beyond staff’s control, unforeseen circumstances and opportunities that may arise.
    Carried as amended
  • Amendment:
    Motion No. CSC2023-04-01
    Moved byM. Carr

    WHEREAS on page 4 of the Integrated Transition to Housing Strategy Report (ACS2023-CSS-GEN-006), hereafter referred to as the report, as part of its medium term strategies identifies, “… a plan for systems change to support housing objectives for clients experiencing homelessness, …”; and

    WHEREAS the Systems Change to Support Housing Objectives is further elaborated on page 21, “Should additional capacity in the form of a new facility be required in the system over the medium term, the City will work with the community to identify the best operating model or focus to support the broader system, including continuing with the principles of the Housing First Approach adopted in 2015; and

    WHEREAS on page 9 of the report, it states that the 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan has as its first core goal, “Everyone has a home,..”; and

    WHEREAS on page 19 of the report, the goal of the Enhanced Housing Allowance for Singles Prototype is, “to quickly reduce the number of clients needing to be served by the shelter system and enable the phasing out of PDCs,” and

    WHEREAS Councillor King’s Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) motion was carried at Community Services Committee on Feb 28 and was approved at Council on March 8, 2023; and

    WHEREAS the motion prioritized considering permanent housing options over a reliance to use recreational spaces as shelters (PDCs); and

    WHEREAS the motion’s first resolution states, “that the City explore supportive housing options using the third round of Rapid Housing Initiative by working with non-profits, community organizations, and housing providers for eligible clients housed in shelter or PDCs and report back to Community Services Committee and Council with evidence of these efforts and final projects selected for funding;” and

    WHEREAS the government of Ontario through its Community Housing Renewal Strategy and response to COVID-19, has prioritized housing first and supportive housing to address homelessness for vulnerable Ontarians, including streamlining and simplifying The Homelessness Prevention Program’s access to provincial housing and homelessness supports; and

    WHEREAS Minister Clarke, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, when announcing the investment into the program, stated that these investments were critical “…so our municipal partners can spend more time focusing on providing vulnerable Ontarians with the supports they need to stay in their homes or get the housing they need.” ; and

    WHEREAS the Government of Canada’s Homelessness Strategy explicitly states a Housing First Approach, by “… moving people experiencing homelessness —particularly people experiencing chronic homelessness—rapidly from the street or emergency shelters into stable and long-term housing, with supports. The goal is to encourage housing stability and improved quality of life for persons served by Housing First and, to the extent possible, foster self-sufficiency.”; and

    WHEREAS the city has discretion to provide funding consistent with the housing first principles espoused by all our levels of government;

    WHEREAS “Shelter” is defined by Part 1 - Section 54 of the Zoning Bylaw as an establishment providing temporary accommodation to individuals who are in immediate need of emergency accommodation and food, and may include ancillary health care, counselling and social support service;

    THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT any organization that receives funding from the city, or funding administered by the city, for programming to shelter people without homes (as defined by Part 1- Section 54 and applied to Part 5 – Section 134 of the Zoning Bylaw) are required to demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the General Manager Community and  Social Services Department, how their proposal will meet the requirements of the housing first principles expressed in this report, and assist in the transition to permanent, suitable housing options.  

    Carried

File No. ACS2023-CSS-GEN-010 – City-wide

The following City staff as well as representatives of Ottawa’s Guiding Council for Mental Health and Addictions, presented an overview of the report recommendations and answered questions from the Committee:

  • Community and Social Services Department: Clara Freire, General Manager, Community and Social Services, Sarah Taylor, Director, Community Safety, Well-being, Policy and Analytics,
  • Ottawa’s Guiding Council for Mental Health and Addictions: Sahada Alolo and Liz Wigfull, Secretariat Co-Directors, Michelle James, Co-Chair, and Joan Riggs, Facilitator

Committee received the following submissions, and a copy of each is filed with the Office of the City Clerk:

  • Sylvie Bigras (Lowertown Community Association) email dated June 26
  • Karen Wright (Civic Hospital Neighbourhood Association) letter dated June 26

Robin Browne and Kaitlin Griggs spoke before the Committee on this item.

Following discussions, the Committee gave the direction below and considered the report recommendations as follows:

Direction to Staff (Councillor A. Troster)

That staff be directed to expedite and prioritize the launch of the Alternate Response Pilot, and report back by memo to the Community Services Committee with a firm work plan, including a scheduled updates to Committee, and any required financial requirements in order to launch as soon as operationally feasible.

  • Report recommendations

    That the Community Services Committee recommend that Council:

    1. Approve the strategies and actions to implement the first phase of the safer alternative response program for mental health and substance use crises, as described in this report, including :
      1. A non-911 number to establish an alternative call intake, triage and dispatch system for mental health and substance use crisis related calls; and
      2. A community-based civilian-led multi-disciplinary mobile crisis response that is a 24/7 trauma-informed and culturally appropriate crisis response service.
    2. Direct the General Manager, Community and Social Services to undertake the necessary work to set-up the required project governance, infrastructure, and resources to develop and implement the first phase of the safer alternative response program by Q3 2024.  
    3. Approve the one time funding of $2.465M be funded from the Tax Stabilization Reserve Fund for the first phase of the safer alternative response program.
    4. Request that the Ottawa Police Services Board seek grant funding through other levels of government to support the strategies and actions described in this report to establish a safer alternate response program.
    Carried

File No. ACS2023-CSS-GEN-009 – City-wide

There were no public submissions to Committee on this item.

The Committee gave the direction below and considered the report recommendations as follows:

Direction to Staff (Councillor R. King)

In regards to the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan’s proposed Poverty Reduction Strategy, staff be directed to explore the incorporation of a community wealth building approach in regards to economic development considerations.  Community wealth building has been defined as a system-changing approach to community economic development that works to produce equity and economic prosperity through enhanced community participation and social inclusion.

  • Report recommendations

    That the Community Services Committee recommend that Council:

    1. Receive this report providing an update on the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan; and
    2. Reaffirm the City of Ottawa’s commitment to the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan and its priorities.
    Carried

There were no in camera items.

There were no Inquiries.

There was no other business.

Next Meeting: Tuesday, September 26, 2023

The meeting adjourned at 4:36 pm.

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