Stark, like several others, suggested that rural county politicians who are responsible for social services in both urban and rural Sarnia-Lambton, don’t recognize how serious homelessness is in Sarnia because they don’t see it.

Cathy Dobson/The Independent

Lambton County council and staff were heavily criticized at an all-candidates forum Thursday for its slow response to the Rainbow Park encampment crisis and its inability to meet affordable housing demands.

“The time it took (to remove the homeless from Rainbow Park) eroded public trust,” said John Richardson, one of 17 candidates hoping to win one of four city/council seats Oct. 26.  “Housing is our job and we need to do it.”  

“The encampment was a problem without a solution and it dragged on and on and on,” said Mike Stark, a longtime politician who lost his council seat in 2022 and wants it back. “…You need to have an alternative for people to live with some dignity and to help them build up, as opposed to thinking of them as disposal.”

Stark, like several others, suggested that rural county politicians who are responsible for social services in both urban and rural Sarnia-Lambton, don’t recognize how serious homelessness is in Sarnia because they don’t see it.

“People are not disposal,” Stark said. “They are all of our problem, so don’t assume that if you don’t see them, the problem doesn’t exist.”

“I just couldn’t get over the lack of co-ordination between the city and the county, the police and social services,” said Mario Fazio, a realtor making his first foray into municipal politics. “I felt so sorry for these people who were freezing by the river in January.”

No one took charge of the crisis, charged Fazio.  The encampment in Rainbow Park may be gone but Sarnia will continue to have a homelessness problem until enough affordable housing is built, he said. “We need clear direction and people who can actually build these things.”  

Later, Fazio said Lambton County’s social services department is full of “goodhearted people” who don’t know how to get the job done.

Approximately 1,100 affordable units are needed in Sarnia, but they aren’t being built quickly enough, he said. “I propose to streamline the process, make it faster and get these people into accommodations they can afford.”

Retired lawyer Ed Gresham took county council to task for how it selected a site for a proposed Indwell supportive housing project on George Street.

His accusation that county politicians held a “secret” meeting and didn’t consult the neighbours was met with loud applause.  Gresham then pledged to work with both city and county officials to ensure affordable and supportive housing sites are chosen with consent from both levels of government.

Two incumbents who held city/county seats last term – Brian White and Chrissy McRoberts – are vying to return. At the forum, they frequently defended political decisions made over the past four years but agreed with several other candidates that communication between the two levels needs to improve.

Candidate Paul Wiersma said Rainbow Park remained a problem for over a year because the city and county didn’t co-ordinate to find a solution.

“They kept fighting each other,” Wiersma said.  He suggested that county and city politicians and staff become “more transparent” and meet a couple times a year to discuss joint areas of concern.

McRoberts agreed. She said there’s a “disconnect” between rural and urban Lambton.  “A couple of times the conversation has gone, why does Sarnia think that their issues are our issues? McRoberts said.  Municipal responsibilities are split between the city and the county, with the county charged with social services including housing and social services for all of Sarnia-Lambton.

McRoberts also said she believes the Indwell proposal to build supportive housing “is the best idea so far” and that hiring a police officer for security may calm neighbourhood concerns about potentially dangerous behaviour and drug use.

White, who was co-chair of a county initiative called the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan established by Lambton County in 2022, said the provincially mandated plan never launched because the Ontario government never funded it. 

The plan is a framework to address social issues and may need to be funded by local municipal government instead, White said.

He said he believes Lambton County and the city co-ordinated better in the last few years. However, he wants a new “team” of city and county staff and politicians to be created so that issues can be addressed before they become difficult to control.

The two-tier government in Sarnia-Lambton is somewhat rare in the municipal world and creates challenges, White said.  “But residents don’t care about these separations between governing structures…they just want solutions and it’s our job to navigate that.”

Thursday’s forum at The Dante Club attracted about 50 people and 13 of the 17 candidates running for city/county seats.   George Vandenberg, Margaret Bird, Al Duffy and Mark Lamore were absent.

The event was hosted by Sarnia-Lambton’s Poverty Reduction Network (PRN) to bring social issues to the forefront. 

PRN co-chair Adrienne McPhee said she was impressed with how respectful the candidates were with one another.

“Poverty and homelessness are very divisive issues in Sarnia-Lambton and people feel very, very strongly,” McPhee said. “The need is incredibly urgent. Folks are sleeping outside tonight, so I’m glad that it’s top-of-mind for people.”

Several questions were directed to all the participants Thursday, including this one from the audience:

WHAT IS THE FIRST MOTION YOU’LL MAKE AT CITY OR COUNTY COUNCIL TO ADDRESS POVERTY REDUCTION?

• MARIO FAZIO –  Said he’d form a group of Lambton County and city officials to address poverty in Sarnia-Lambton.
• ED GRESHAM – Would also create a poverty reduction committee.  “Someone needs to be in charge.”
• ADAM KILNER – Would initiate “food hubs” for people struggling to make ends meet.  These would offer food at lower prices than grocery stores but would not be food banks.  “It’s more empowering to buy.”
• PAUL WIERSMA – “I don’t think we need a committee.” The county has had a Community Safety and Well-Being plan since 2022.  “It needs to be implemented.”
• CHRISSY MCROBERTS – Would make a motion to appeal to the province to direct deposit Ontario Works cheques to landlords, so social support would definitely be spent to keep people housed.
• ANDY BRUZIEWICZ – “I would reverse the actions of the last council that destroyed the entrepreneurial spirit.”
• PETER GOODMAN – Would initiate “rent-to-own” mortgages for people provided affordable housing.
• BILL ANNING – A motion for the city to support the Inn of the Good Shepherd.
• CHARMAINE MURRAY – A motion to enact a plan for more affordable housing.
• BRIAN WHITE – A motion to create mentorship opportunities for people to develop new skills.
• MIKE STARK – “Waiving of development charges should be targeted on affordable housing only. And we need a definition for affordable housing. I am fed up with all the studies and all the committees.  Let’s get something done.” 
• PAT COUTU – “There’s no money for new programs so you have to find new money for any program.” To generate cash, his first motion would be to declare land across from city hall as surplus and sell it to a developer; then use some of the property taxes for a poverty reduction committee.
• JOHN RICHARDSON – No response.  He apologized earlier for having to leave before the audience Q & A.