Ontario and the Region of Waterloo are appealing a recent court decision that blocks the removal of a homeless encampment in a Kitchener, Ont., parking lot the two governments say is needed for a transit hub.
An Ontario Superior Court judge last month ruled that a local bylaw created to allow the region to remove about two dozen homeless people from the encampment violates their Charter rights.
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Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey and Region of Waterloo Chair Karen Redman say in a joint statement today that they intend to appeal, as the lot is needed for construction of the Kitchener Central Transit Hub.
Downey says the appeal is needed in order to provide certainty as the government looks to build critical infrastructure projects not just in Kitchener, but across the province.
Since 2022, the region has tried to dismantle the encampment through the courts, but has so far been unsuccessful.
Superior Court Judge Michael R. Gibson found the bylaw unconstitutional in part because the Region of Waterloo said it was not prepared to allow any alternative lawful encampment sites for homeless people if that lot was cleared.
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