PArt 2
a little bit of background before delving in
RE: 100 Victoria proposed Bylaw
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view part 1
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As published on April 21, 2025
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Nickels & Dimes: Seeking Change (and trying to make cents of it all !?!?!)
RElated to:
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The Plan to End Chronic homelessness (PECH)The Region’s approach to housing and homelessness has evolved over the years into our most recent local strategy known as The Plan to End Chronic Homelessness (PECH).
While I’m not going to dive fully into all the PECH work and details right now, I do encourage you to check out Engaged WR, where you can learn more about this local approach to housing.
To offer some context for the ramblings that will undoubtedly follow, here are a few main elements I want to highlight about this approach. Firstly, this work has centered around two key streams of community building: The prototyping groups and lived experience component: These parts of the conversation have been led by the Social Development Center. The Co-Creators Table: This space brings together a wider range of additional stakeholders — such as support agency representatives, educators, advocates, outreach workers, and many others — to collaborate and discuss these important issues. These have been led by Overlap and regional staff. |
Both of these contributions have been working in sync as part of a dual effort to address local homelessness. While these efforts may not lead to perfect success, they represent the approach we’ve been taking locally over the past few years.
Through this collaboration, we've developed a series of “actions” — or steps that need to be taken — to move us closer to ending chronic homelessness locally.
These actions — and the broader communal effort behind them (PECH) — have been officially approved and adopted by Council as the local approach to addressing homelessness. They’ve also received funding allocations to help support and ensure their successful implementation.
REgional code of USe Bylaw 13-050
document of reference:
By-law 13-050 - A By-law Respecting the Conduct of Persons Entering Upon Buildings, Grounds and Public Transportation Vehicles Owned or Occupied by The Regional Municipality of Waterloo - Consolidated Version (2023)
The Code of Use By-law 13-050 outlines the rules and guidelines for accessing and using regional (public) property.
A recent amendment added a clause explicitly prohibiting hateful conduct, enforceable by penalty or fine. Quite uniquely, it also identified housing status as a protected ground - listed under those included - for the purpose of that specific legislation.
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"The Region of Waterloo chose to add an anti-hate and harassment provision in their code of use bylaw. This prohibits discrimination while on their properties. They opted to include within the list of protected grounds “Socio-economic status and housing status”. It’s a big leap forward policy wise, and stands included in their codified contents." Source |