The province and the Region of Waterloo announced the governments will appeal a recent decision on the Victoria Street encampment that prevented the clearing of people staying on the land.
In a press release, the government notes that the encampment, at 100 Victoria St. in Kitchener, is on the same piece of land slated for the Kitchener Central Transit Hub, which it calls a “critical piece of infrastructure needed to improve transit options.”
Last month, Ontario Superior Court Justice Michael Gibson ruled the region’s site-specific bylaw to clear the encampment and its amendments violated the Charter rights of the residents and therefore could not be enforced.
The ruling came about a month after court proceedings concluded with Justice Gibson reserving his decision to allow him time to fully consider the case.
“Our government is appealing this decision in order to provide the certainty and stability needed to advance critical infrastructure projects here in Waterloo Region and across Ontario,” Attorney General Doug Downey, said in the press release June 16.
Gibson’s 88-page decision boiled down to the fact that there simply isn’t adequate shelter space to accommodate the residents. That, coupled with bylaws that prevent camping on regional property, once evicted, some of the residents would have nowhere to go.
With files from Matt Hutcheson, CityNews.
This is a developing story. More to come.