The crisis is further underscored by a troubling mortality rate; between December 2023 and May 2024, 25 individuals without housing died, with overdoses cited as the leading cause. These figures not only highlight the urgency of the situation but also the need for comprehensive, compassionate, and coordinated responses.
The City of Hamilton is committed to tackling homelessness through sustainable, long-term solutions that prioritize permanent housing with comprehensive support services. Guided by the Housing Sustainability & Investment Roadmap and the Housing & Homelessness Action Plan, the City follows a Housing First approach, ensuring that investments are directed toward stable housing rather than short-term emergency responses.
The City’s 2025 Tax Budget reflects our commitment to housing solutions by allocating critical investments toward housing and homelessness initiatives. Additional 2025 investment breakdowns will be updated on the Whole of Hamilton Housing Approach webpage in the coming days. As part of the 2024 tax budget, Hamilton City Council committed $4 million annually for affordable housing and $10.3 million per year for supportive housing over three years.
For more information on how Hamilton is prioritizing housing solutions, you may find this helpful:Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap: Year Two Update – News Release (December 5, 2024)
City of Hamilton Adopts 2025 Municipal Budget – News Release (February 19, 2025)2025 Tax & Rate Budget | The City of Hamilton – Webpage
2. What actions is Hamilton taking to ensure that funding for homelessness is directed toward sustainable housing solutions and supportive services, rather than being primarily focused on crisis management and temporary fixes?
The City of Hamilton has adopted the Whole of Hamilton Housing Approach, which promotes cross-sector collaboration to create long-term housing solutions. This approach ensures that municipal investments are strategically directed toward permanent, affordable housing and wraparound support services, helping individuals transition out of homelessness with stability and dignity.
The City also implemented the Affordable Housing Development Project Stream, launched to support the expansion of affordable housing in the non-profit housing sector. In January 2025, the City announced $8.2 million from this yearly allocation to fund 11 projects, creating 440 affordable housing units and 435 supportive housing units. By providing municipal contributions such as fee exemptions, land, and capital funding, Hamilton is actively partnering with non-profit housing providers to scale sustainable housing solutions.
3. Can you provide data on the number of individuals entering homelessness each month versus those transitioning into permanent housing? Does the City collect data that allows for an accurate measurement of this trend?
The City works closely with the homeless serving sector to collect data about the state of homelessness and access to affordable housing in the city. As numbers are fluid, you can view the most recent stats online via the Housing and Homelessness Dashboard | City of Hamilton.
4. Has Hamilton looked into the best practices of neighbouring regions, such as Guelph-Wellington and St. Thomas, to learn from their efforts in reducing homelessness? If so, could you describe those practices and any potential plans to incorporate them? If not, what factors have prevented this?
Yes. The City of Hamilton is a member of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness and the Built for Zero collaborative, working with national and regional housing collaboratives to share best practices, drive innovation, and strengthen efforts to prevent and end homelessness.
We also work with municipal peers through the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area Housing Housing Table and the Regional Planning Commissioners of Ontario. In 2025, City staff will be conducting a multijurisdictional scan to evaluate housing programs and best practices from other regions. Findings from this analysis are expected to be presented to Council in November shared in the 2025 Housing Roadmap update, ensuring that evidence-based, forward-thinking policies continue to guide the City’s housing initiatives.
5. Are there any evidence-based solutions the City has implemented that have shown success and could be expanded? If so, what progress has been made in scaling these initiatives?
Yes. The City of Hamilton established the Housing Secretariat in 2023 to lead the implementation of the Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap (HSIR). The Housing Secretariat has a stretch goal of building 967 affordable units per year over three different programs.350 affordable units at 80 percent Average Market Rent (AMR) (10-Year Housing and Homelessness Action Plan target)
350 moderately affordable units at 125 per cent AMR (Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap target)
200 affordable units (67 per year) at 100 per cent AMR (through the Housing Accelerator Fund)
The Housing Secretariat has an additional goal of creating 200 units (67 units per year) of supportive housing over the next three years for people who are experiencing homelessness.
Also, please see the response in Q2 about the Affordable Housing Development Project Stream. This initiative continues to drive critical investments in housing, reinforcing the City's commitment to expanding safe, stable, and affordable housing options for its residents.
6. Leading experts suggest that for every new temporary shelter space added, a city needs to provide six additional affordable housing units to avoid individuals becoming trapped in homelessness. Is Hamilton effectively keeping pace with this ratio? If not, how is the City balancing this need with ongoing investments in temporary solutions?
Hamilton recognizes the importance of balancing immediate shelter needs with long-term housing solutions. While emergency shelters play a role in responding to urgent situations, the City is focused on increasing the affordable housing supply to prevent individuals from remaining in a cycle of homelessness.
In addition to the initiatives contained in the HSIR, in October 2023, the City received $93.5 million from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund which aims to add 2,675 net new residential units over a three-year period through seven initiatives.
For more information, you may find these helpful:Housing Accelerator Fund | City of Hamilton – Webpage
Housing Secretariat | City of Hamilton – Webpage
Affordable Housing Development Project Stream | City of Hamilton – Webpage
Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap: Year Two Update – News Release (December 5, 2024)
7. How does the City plan to measure the effectiveness of its homelessness initiatives, and what steps will be taken to ensure that funds are directed toward programs that lead to sustainable, positive outcomes for those at risk of homelessness?
The City of Hamilton is committed to measuring the impact of its homelessness initiatives through a data-driven and outcomes-based approach. We have established performance metrics — ranging from prevention and diversion to intensive case management and supportive housing, and effectiveness is tracked through indicators such as:
· the number of individuals housed and supported
· the percentage who remain housed after exiting programs
· reductions in return to homelessness, and caseload capacity for frontline staff.
In terms of funding, the City has used transparent, competitive processes like Community Calls for Applications, aligning investments with interventions that show the strongest evidence of long-term impact. This ensures limited resources are directed where they will have the greatest impact. The Housing Secretariat will monitor the number of affordable and supportive housing units that are being built in the city.
For more information, you may find this helpful: Housing & Homelessness Action Plan | The City of Hamilton - Webpage
8. Are there any innovative approaches or new partnerships the City is exploring to address homelessness? If so, could you share more details on these initiatives?
Yes. Strong partnerships with non-profit organizations remain central to Hamilton’s housing progress. Through ongoing collaborations with groups like Hamilton is Home and the Hamilton Community Foundation, the City supports innovative projects, policy development, and funding streams that expand access to housing.
These partnerships have been instrumental in addressing housing challenges, ensuring that resources are effectively allocated to those in need. Through targeted funding initiatives, these organizations have been empowered to develop and sustain affordable and supportive housing projects, creating long-term solutions for individuals and families facing housing insecurity.
This collective approach ensures that progress in affordable and supportive housing is not just a vision but a sustained reality, benefiting present and future generations alike.
9. How do you respond to critics who argue that temporary solutions like mini cabins may not fully respect the human dignity of those experiencing homelessness and that more sustainable, permanent housing solutions are needed?
While we recognize concerns about temporary solutions, low-barrier emergency solutions are necessary in our current context and remain intended as immediate responses to acute needs, not long-term solutions. The City of Hamilton is committed to permanent housing solutions as the ultimate goal and continues to pursue this with a collaborative approach coordinated through Hamilton’s Housing Secretariat Division, aligning local priorities with provincial and federal partners to advocate for increased investment and policy alignment to address this goal. These temporary measures provide crucial stability, safety, and dignity in the short term, allowing individuals to access critical services and supports necessary for transitioning into permanent housing. Hamilton remains dedicated to working collaboratively with all levels of government and community partners to increase availability of sustainable, dignified, and permanent housing solutions.
For more information, you may find these helpful:Approved Temporary Shelter Expansion | City of Hamilton – Webpage
City and Good Shepherd Opening Doors to Temporary Outdoor Shelter – News Release (February 25, 2025)
10. Is there any additional information or topic that you feel we should have addressed in this interview? If so, please feel free to raise it and provide your perspective.
The Tenant Support Program | City of Hamilton is a key initiative that strengthens housing stability and prevent evictions through a coordinated, equity-informed strategy that brings together City services, community partners, and tenant voices. A Tenant Rights and Entitlements Guide has also been developed to further support residents.
The Hamiltonian thanks Michelle Baird, Director, Housing Services and Justin Lewis, Director, Housing Secretariat for these responses. A special thank-you to Media Relations staff!
The Hamiltonian reached out to the city's Housing Services and Housing Secretariat to make inquiries into Hamilton's strategy.
1. How is the City ensuring that its investments prioritize long-term solutions to homelessness, as opposed to short-term measures such as emergency shelters or encampments? Could you provide the proportion of the homelessness budget allocated to emergency responses versus permanent housing solutions with comprehensive support services?The City of Hamilton is committed to tackling homelessness through sustainable, long-term solutions that prioritize permanent housing with comprehensive support services. Guided by the Housing Sustainability & Investment Roadmap and the Housing & Homelessness Action Plan, the City follows a Housing First approach, ensuring that investments are directed toward stable housing rather than short-term emergency responses.
The City’s 2025 Tax Budget reflects our commitment to housing solutions by allocating critical investments toward housing and homelessness initiatives. Additional 2025 investment breakdowns will be updated on the Whole of Hamilton Housing Approach webpage in the coming days. As part of the 2024 tax budget, Hamilton City Council committed $4 million annually for affordable housing and $10.3 million per year for supportive housing over three years.
For more information on how Hamilton is prioritizing housing solutions, you may find this helpful:Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap: Year Two Update – News Release (December 5, 2024)
City of Hamilton Adopts 2025 Municipal Budget – News Release (February 19, 2025)2025 Tax & Rate Budget | The City of Hamilton – Webpage
2. What actions is Hamilton taking to ensure that funding for homelessness is directed toward sustainable housing solutions and supportive services, rather than being primarily focused on crisis management and temporary fixes?
The City of Hamilton has adopted the Whole of Hamilton Housing Approach, which promotes cross-sector collaboration to create long-term housing solutions. This approach ensures that municipal investments are strategically directed toward permanent, affordable housing and wraparound support services, helping individuals transition out of homelessness with stability and dignity.
The City also implemented the Affordable Housing Development Project Stream, launched to support the expansion of affordable housing in the non-profit housing sector. In January 2025, the City announced $8.2 million from this yearly allocation to fund 11 projects, creating 440 affordable housing units and 435 supportive housing units. By providing municipal contributions such as fee exemptions, land, and capital funding, Hamilton is actively partnering with non-profit housing providers to scale sustainable housing solutions.
3. Can you provide data on the number of individuals entering homelessness each month versus those transitioning into permanent housing? Does the City collect data that allows for an accurate measurement of this trend?
The City works closely with the homeless serving sector to collect data about the state of homelessness and access to affordable housing in the city. As numbers are fluid, you can view the most recent stats online via the Housing and Homelessness Dashboard | City of Hamilton.
4. Has Hamilton looked into the best practices of neighbouring regions, such as Guelph-Wellington and St. Thomas, to learn from their efforts in reducing homelessness? If so, could you describe those practices and any potential plans to incorporate them? If not, what factors have prevented this?
Yes. The City of Hamilton is a member of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness and the Built for Zero collaborative, working with national and regional housing collaboratives to share best practices, drive innovation, and strengthen efforts to prevent and end homelessness.
We also work with municipal peers through the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area Housing Housing Table and the Regional Planning Commissioners of Ontario. In 2025, City staff will be conducting a multijurisdictional scan to evaluate housing programs and best practices from other regions. Findings from this analysis are expected to be presented to Council in November shared in the 2025 Housing Roadmap update, ensuring that evidence-based, forward-thinking policies continue to guide the City’s housing initiatives.
5. Are there any evidence-based solutions the City has implemented that have shown success and could be expanded? If so, what progress has been made in scaling these initiatives?
Yes. The City of Hamilton established the Housing Secretariat in 2023 to lead the implementation of the Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap (HSIR). The Housing Secretariat has a stretch goal of building 967 affordable units per year over three different programs.350 affordable units at 80 percent Average Market Rent (AMR) (10-Year Housing and Homelessness Action Plan target)
350 moderately affordable units at 125 per cent AMR (Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap target)
200 affordable units (67 per year) at 100 per cent AMR (through the Housing Accelerator Fund)
The Housing Secretariat has an additional goal of creating 200 units (67 units per year) of supportive housing over the next three years for people who are experiencing homelessness.
Also, please see the response in Q2 about the Affordable Housing Development Project Stream. This initiative continues to drive critical investments in housing, reinforcing the City's commitment to expanding safe, stable, and affordable housing options for its residents.
6. Leading experts suggest that for every new temporary shelter space added, a city needs to provide six additional affordable housing units to avoid individuals becoming trapped in homelessness. Is Hamilton effectively keeping pace with this ratio? If not, how is the City balancing this need with ongoing investments in temporary solutions?
Hamilton recognizes the importance of balancing immediate shelter needs with long-term housing solutions. While emergency shelters play a role in responding to urgent situations, the City is focused on increasing the affordable housing supply to prevent individuals from remaining in a cycle of homelessness.
In addition to the initiatives contained in the HSIR, in October 2023, the City received $93.5 million from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund which aims to add 2,675 net new residential units over a three-year period through seven initiatives.
For more information, you may find these helpful:Housing Accelerator Fund | City of Hamilton – Webpage
Housing Secretariat | City of Hamilton – Webpage
Affordable Housing Development Project Stream | City of Hamilton – Webpage
Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap: Year Two Update – News Release (December 5, 2024)
7. How does the City plan to measure the effectiveness of its homelessness initiatives, and what steps will be taken to ensure that funds are directed toward programs that lead to sustainable, positive outcomes for those at risk of homelessness?
The City of Hamilton is committed to measuring the impact of its homelessness initiatives through a data-driven and outcomes-based approach. We have established performance metrics — ranging from prevention and diversion to intensive case management and supportive housing, and effectiveness is tracked through indicators such as:
· the number of individuals housed and supported
· the percentage who remain housed after exiting programs
· reductions in return to homelessness, and caseload capacity for frontline staff.
In terms of funding, the City has used transparent, competitive processes like Community Calls for Applications, aligning investments with interventions that show the strongest evidence of long-term impact. This ensures limited resources are directed where they will have the greatest impact. The Housing Secretariat will monitor the number of affordable and supportive housing units that are being built in the city.
For more information, you may find this helpful: Housing & Homelessness Action Plan | The City of Hamilton - Webpage
8. Are there any innovative approaches or new partnerships the City is exploring to address homelessness? If so, could you share more details on these initiatives?
Yes. Strong partnerships with non-profit organizations remain central to Hamilton’s housing progress. Through ongoing collaborations with groups like Hamilton is Home and the Hamilton Community Foundation, the City supports innovative projects, policy development, and funding streams that expand access to housing.
These partnerships have been instrumental in addressing housing challenges, ensuring that resources are effectively allocated to those in need. Through targeted funding initiatives, these organizations have been empowered to develop and sustain affordable and supportive housing projects, creating long-term solutions for individuals and families facing housing insecurity.
This collective approach ensures that progress in affordable and supportive housing is not just a vision but a sustained reality, benefiting present and future generations alike.
9. How do you respond to critics who argue that temporary solutions like mini cabins may not fully respect the human dignity of those experiencing homelessness and that more sustainable, permanent housing solutions are needed?
While we recognize concerns about temporary solutions, low-barrier emergency solutions are necessary in our current context and remain intended as immediate responses to acute needs, not long-term solutions. The City of Hamilton is committed to permanent housing solutions as the ultimate goal and continues to pursue this with a collaborative approach coordinated through Hamilton’s Housing Secretariat Division, aligning local priorities with provincial and federal partners to advocate for increased investment and policy alignment to address this goal. These temporary measures provide crucial stability, safety, and dignity in the short term, allowing individuals to access critical services and supports necessary for transitioning into permanent housing. Hamilton remains dedicated to working collaboratively with all levels of government and community partners to increase availability of sustainable, dignified, and permanent housing solutions.
For more information, you may find these helpful:Approved Temporary Shelter Expansion | City of Hamilton – Webpage
City and Good Shepherd Opening Doors to Temporary Outdoor Shelter – News Release (February 25, 2025)
10. Is there any additional information or topic that you feel we should have addressed in this interview? If so, please feel free to raise it and provide your perspective.
The Tenant Support Program | City of Hamilton is a key initiative that strengthens housing stability and prevent evictions through a coordinated, equity-informed strategy that brings together City services, community partners, and tenant voices. A Tenant Rights and Entitlements Guide has also been developed to further support residents.
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