Edmonton council declares emergency over housing, homelessness
Posted January 16, 2024 3:22 pm.
Last Updated January 16, 2024 4:15 pm.
Edmonton’s city council passed a motion declaring an emergency over housing and homelessness Tuesday.
City council approved Mayor Amarjeet Sohi’s motion 9-4.
“As a system, we are failing people” Sohi told council in his closing remarks.
While he appreciates the taxpayer dollars spent by both the province and the federal government on affordable housing, he feels the “severity and scale of the problem requires mobilization of the community.”
The mayor hopes the declaration of an emergency will be an opportunity for business leaders, social sectors and community members to step up.
The motion was divided into different parts, with unanimous support for the creation of a task force and calls for a meeting with all levels of government and local First Nations on housing and homelessness.
Councillors Tim Cartmell, Sarah Hamilton, Karen Principe and Tim Paquette voted against the motion’s “emergency” portion.
They shared concerns the move was largely symbolic without action, as both the provincial and federal have more resources to address the housing crisis.
