Sarnia's mayor is calling on the County of Lambton to become part of the solution as it relates to homelessness and addictions, particularly at Rainbow Park.
Mike Bradley has penned a letter to county staff, calling on the removal of restrictions at area homeless shelters.
That advice was provided to the city by John Mascarin of Aird & Berlis LLP, who is also the county's integrity commissioner.
The move would open up the possibility of securing a provincial court injunction to remove the growing homeless encampment in Sarnia's downtown.
Bradley said as of late July, there were about 48 beds available in Sarnia, but securing space at some facilities is contingent on factors including age, whether an individual is clean, whether they have a spouse or pet, and gender.
"Whether I agree or disagree with the province's stance is immaterial, that's what the courts have said," said Bradley. "We're trying to craft a strategy that will allow us to deal with what's happening in the community today at Rainbow Park and do it in a way that will be successful. At the same time, we want to have the services in place."
Bradley said there's an increasing sense of urgency.
"The city and the taxpayers cannot sustain an encampment and the costs that we have today, nor the impacts that it's having on the residents in the area and around the city. " he said. "If Rainbow Park were to shut down tomorrow for whatever reason we need to have the community, through the county, be prepared to deal with what the impacts are going to be. There's no point in replicating that in other parts of the community. I know the public is frustrated, and all of us dealing with the issue are exhausted because there's no roadmap for this."
Bradley's letter asks county officials whether they've looked at the restrictions related to couples and other issues that would remove any court challenge.
He wants to know whether the county would support Sarnia City Council, should it decide to move forward on an injunction at some point for Rainbow Park.
If the answer is 'no', Bradley is asking whether the County of Lambton would provide the city with Affidavit evidence from county staff to support an application for an injunction to dismantle the encampment established a Rainbow Park, if the city proceeds with an application in the future.
Bradley said it's been an ongoing battle to get the province on board.
"A motion came out of county council on May 1 to Premier Doug Ford," he said. "We asked him to take the lead and bring all 144 municipalities together so we have a common plan and can work together. That's been totally ignored by the province. The premier was supposed to address it at the recent Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference in Ottawa, and he did not do so."
In June, Sarnia City Council rejected a call to obtain a court injunction to clear homeless encampments, including the one set up at Rainbow Park.
In mid-August, Sarnia police were given the authority, on behalf of the city, to implement the Trespass to Property Act that's required to enforce the document.
Lambton County Council will consider Bradley's Notice of Motion during its next meeting, on Wednesday, September 4 at 9 a.m.