Telephone Town Hall - The Mental Health, Addiction and Homelessness Crisis in St. Catharines

On Thursday, July 13, 2023, the City of St. Catharines made calls to residents to gather input on the mental health, addiction and homelessness crisis in the city.

The City recognizes that homelessness, addiction and poor mental health are becoming more visible in our City as with many municipalities across North America. As a lower tier municipality, there is only so much that falls under our purview.

Mayor Mat Siscoe, Inspector Rob LaPlante from NRPS; Cathy Cousins, Director of Homelessness Services, from Niagara Region Community Services; Dr. Azim Kasmani, Medical Officer of Health and Commissioner of Public Health and Emergency Services for from Niagara Public Health; and Shelly Mousseau, Program Director from Gateway and Niagara Assertive Street Outreach (NASO) took part in the call to answer questions and hear feedback from the public on how we can work together to create Safe Spaces for All in our community.

What is a Telephone Town Hall?

A telephone town hall provides residents an opportunity to give feedback and learn more about the subject at hand all from the comfort of their home. It is similar to a radio call-in show, except instead of individuals calling in, the City calls residents.

40,000 households are called randomly to see if residents would like to participate. In addition, those that have directly added themselves to the call list will also be contacted.

Replay the call

Find out more

Information about housing and homelessness in St. Catharines can be found at stcatharines.ca/Homelessness.