THUNDER BAY – Officials are hopeful that a new strategy for approaching the province will yield positive results for the District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board.
Instead of just asking the provincial government for help, DSSAB chair Brian Hamilton told Newswatch on Tuesday, the board went to this year's Association of Municipalities of Ontario conference with a change in tack.
“This year, we really wanted the province to know that we're partners and that we are identifying efficiencies within the system so that we could optimize service delivery,” Hamilton said.
The Thunder Bay District DSSAB teamed up with the Kenora DSSAB to speak with Attorney General Doug Downey about enhancing the Landlord Tenant Board, he said.
Currently, Hamilton said, there are no arbitrators in Kenora and only one in Thunder Bay, working part-time on evictions.
The DSSAB asked the ministry to employ dedicated arbitrators who are subject experts on community housing to help streamline the eviction process for public landlords.
Hamilton said they made their case to Downey, and the meeting went well, but the attorney general was also interested in what happens to those individuals once they are evicted.
“The minister is not interested in putting people on the street, and neither are we. We made the case that we are trying to get people into the right housing stream so that they could get the care they require right now,” Hamilton said.
“Some individuals who lack the agency to live independently are being exploited in social housing. We want to make sure that they're supported and they get the care that they need in dedicated supportive housing units, which other ministries are committed to providing. We just need the tools to be able to make sure we could be really responsive when we have disruptive behaviour in social housing.”
The DSSAB also met with the associate minister of mental health and addictions, Vijay Thanigasalam.
“We had a specific ask for a dedicated supportive housing institution to help ease some of the strains that we're seeing at St. Joe's Hospital,” Hamilton said.
"People are spending sometimes months in beds when they could be in a cheaper, much more efficient model of service delivery in a dedicated facility and free up some of those beds at St. Joe's."
“At the DSSAB, we are cognizant that we have to be, whenever possible, (helping to) facilitate the health care spectrum overall more broadly. We have a role to play. We are the housing provider, and we have great relationships with healthcare providers.”
He said those discussions with the ministry are still ongoing.
Lastly, Hamilton said the DSSAB met with Education Minister Paul Calandra about increasing opportunities for early childhood education.
“That was a timely one because Minister Paul Calandra is actually in talks right now with the federal government on the new (Canada-wide early learning and child care) program and what that looks like. So, we went in there, along with several other municipalities, to just make that case that we need to support our workers doing that frontline service delivery,” Hamilton said.
He said they aren’t looking for a pay increase, per se, as early childhood educators have had wage increases over the last few years. What they are looking for is a pay grid to inspire individuals to look at early childcare education as a career opportunity.
“Childcare is absolutely critical. I mean, if you want to get this economy going, getting people back to work and providing quality care, ultimately, we have to take care of the workers who are doing that frontline service delivery,” Hamilton said.