Calling Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall an "absolute champion," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he would visit the city to discuss concerns about homeless encampments.
"I'm going to go and pay him a visit and take a look around and see how we can help him," the premier said in response to a question about his reaction to the mayor's decision to declare a state of emergency last week."
Ford was in Markdale at an unrelated event on Friday afternoon when he was asked for his reaction about the state of emergency in Barrie.
"I know we've given them (Barrie) quite a bit of money already for the encampments," the premier stated, and suggested he might drive up to the city this weekend.
Ford showered praise on Nuttall, calling him an "absolute champion" for tackling the issue.
The premier referenced weapons that came out of one tent and unsanitary conditions.
"It was disgusting," he said.
Nuttall declared a state of emergency on September 9 because of the growing number of homeless encampments in Barrie, which the city estimated to be over 20, with 650 unhoused individuals.
Two days after the declaration, the city stepped in and had more than 20 tents dismantled near the courthouse on Mulcaster Street.
The County of Simcoe, which is responsible for social services, including the shelter system in Barrie, said last Friday that it had engaged with 44 individuals who were living at that encampment site, and of those, 36 had been successfully supported with accommodation and relocated to those spaces, while eight other individuals from the site declined offers of shelter spaces.
Nuttall recently penned letters to both Ford and Prime Minister Mark Carney about the city's struggle with homeless encampments.
