Several organizations and advocates are calling on the city of Saint John to rethink its approach to homelessness.
Proposed “red zones” unveiled earlier in September highlight areas where tents and encampments will not be allowed.
These include schools, daycares, early learning centres, licensed afterschool programs, special needs centres, crisis care facilities and emergency shelters, playgrounds, splash pads, sports fields, designated parks, provincially designated highways, railways, Harbour Passage, cemeteries and designated “green zones.”
In addition, there will be buffers of 200 metres around schools, childcare centres, “green zones” and crisis care facilities, 100 metres around playgrounds and splash pads, 30 metres around sports fields, parks, highways and railways, and five metres around the Harbour Passage walkway.
City officials said the goal is to relocate people from “red zones” by the end of October, but the plan has been met with pushback.
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Critics argue the city’s approach will push already vulnerable people further into isolation and lead to preventable deaths.
A letter signed by community partners, advocates and concerned residents calls on council to halt the plan until there is “safe, stable, and accessible housing available for everyone affected.”
It also calls for engagement with “lived-experience leaders” to create “humane, evidence-based solutions” and to reallocate policing funds toward harm reduction, mental health and housing.
The letter notes that 101 people in Saint John have died due to homelessness, overdose and poverty-related causes since 2021.
A peaceful protest will take place outside Saint John City Hall ahead of Monday night’s council meeting, where councillors will vote to formally adopt the red zone policy framework.
