A community information session at the Nepean Sportsplex about the city’s sprung shelter project heated up on Wednesday as residents protested and argued with the city councillor, with one attendee rushing the stage and being escorted out of the building by police.
The event was held at the site of one of the sprung shelters that is being planned by the City of Ottawa as a newcomer reception centre. Hosted by Knoxdale-Merivale Coun. Sean Devine and city staff, the event featured presentations from the community organizations involved in the project followed by a Q&A session, during which residents could speak directly to the stakeholders and ask questions.
But the night kicked off with a stir when a man wearing a white shirt that read “no tents in Ottawa” entered the stage, shouting “No tent! No tent!” He was arrested by police and escorted out of the building as residents cheered him on.
“After de-escalation strategies proved unsuccessful, one person was arrested and charged with trespassing at a community event this evening at the Nepean Sportsplex,” Ottawa police said on social media. “The Ottawa Police Service supports the rights of all people to demonstrate in a peaceful manner, but our officers also have an obligation to take action to ensure community safety.”
As Devine attempted to get the meeting back on track, a member of the audience asked if he would be taking questions directly. When he said he would not, but there would be an opportunity during the Q&A session, some attendees stood up and began yelling “Resign!” and chanting “No tents!” and “Shame on you!”. About a third of the audience left at this point, including some wearing matching white, hand-written t-shirts.
Genie Wang was one of them. She told Ottawa Compass that the man who was arrested is her neighbour, and he “never does things like this. But we just want a say.”
“We’re residents here, and we welcome newcomers, but (Devine) is supposed to represent us and he keeps ignoring our voice.”
Lotty Pontones and her mother also left the meeting as Pontones yelled to Devine that government offices downtown should be used instead.
“I do think we all care that the refugees are welcomed into good conditions. Using government offices — actual buildings with proper concrete walls — museums, or other government-owned buildings would be better conditions than temporary tents,” she told Ottawa Compass.
“No one wants to remove kids’ playgrounds and parks in suburban areas for temporary tents,” she continued. “That is simply not fair to residents and those of us that use those places to walk our pets and play outside.”
The property that houses the Nepean Sportsplex has been marked as one of five city-owned sites to host sprung-shelter facilities for newcomers and asylum seekers.
There are currently 330 beds at temporary emergency overflow centres in the city, two of which are operating out of city-owned recreation facilities. Approximately 600 single individuals staying in shelters are newcomers, which represents 60 per cent of shelter users.
The semi-permanent structure for the reception centres is estimated to be more affordable to operate and maintain and can speed up the timeline for opening the centre.
Since the project was confirmed and announced to the public in November, it has been met with swift backlash.
The project has faced criticism during the selection process, namely from Nepean MPP Lisa MacLeod, who has organized protests and rallies to protest the sprung shelters in her constituency.
In a letter to the public, she argues that residents in Knoxdale-Merivale have not been adequately consulted about the project.
MacLeod said Devine’s position “has unfortunately undermined our collective response to city hall.”
Speaking to reporters on Nov. 12, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said he wanted to remind residents that the welcome centres are not permanent housing and that the community centres currently housing newcomers should be returned to their communities.
“Change is difficult, uncertainty is challenging, so people are obviously asking lots of questions, and we’re going to do our best to answer those questions,” he said. “I want to remind people that staff are doing everything they can to manage a very difficult situation with the limited resources we have at the city of Ottawa.”
The following five city-owned properties have been identified: 40 Hearst Way; 3311 Woodroffe Ave.; 160 Lees Ave.; 1645 Woodroffe Ave.; and, 1005/1045 Greenbank Rd. The properties have all been examined for proximity to public transit, walkability and the City’s Neighbourhood Equity Index.
The first structure will be built at 1645 Woodroffe Ave., which is a portion of the NCC-owned parcel. The city currently leases the land for an underutilized football field. The property also houses the Nepean Sportsplex and an OCDSB training facility, which the memo said could allow for additional programming at the centre.
