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IMFG
@imfgtoronto.bsky.social
140 followers 200 following 67 posts
The Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance (IMFG) focuses on the finance and governance issues faced by cities and city-regions in Canada and internationally. Located in the School of Cities at the University of Toronto. www.imfg.org
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7/ Homeless encampments are a human rights crisis, and an opportunity for municipalities to catalyze change by aligning their approaches with human rights principles and investing in the conditions that make housing stability possible. bit.ly/3Xl1hEX
The Governance of Homeless Encampments in Canada The proliferation of homeless encampments in cities across Canada represents both a housing and a governance emergency, resulting in a human rights crisis. This paper describes the legislative context of municipal encampment governance in Canada and examines various court decisions related to encampments. The authors discuss traditional municipal responses to the crisis (including encampment removal), identify barriers to improving encampment strategies, and highlight how rights-based responses can produce outcomes that are more dignified and efficient than the status quo. By Alexandra Flynn and Estair Van Wagner Read the full report: Bit.ly Opportunities for reform: Implement a human rights framework to proactively align municipal policies and practices with human rights norms. Institutionalize human rights within local governance via independent oversight bodies or human rights impact assessments of proposed encampment responses. Pursue new intergovernmental partnerships that clarify roles, establish long-term funding, and enable coordinated planning. Shift public funds toward more effective and cost-efficient responses, such as supportive housing models. Reframe homelessness as a systemic failing rather than an individual choice to foster the political support needed to pursue long-term solutions. Partner with Indigenous governments, organizations, and service providers to develop culturally appropriate housing and shelter options. Logos: IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
November 27, 2025 at 8:36 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
6/ While cities are often on the front lines of the crisis managing parks, bylaws, and temporary shelters, they lack the revenue tools to independently fund and implement long-term housing solutions for unhoused people. bit.ly/3Xl1hEX
… by aligning municipal enforcement policies with provincial commitments to housing and health care, governments can create pathways out of encampments rather than simply displacing encampment residents. Alexandra Flynn and Estair Van Wagner The Governance of Homeless Encampments in Canada Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
November 27, 2025 at 8:36 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
5/ One of the key barriers to the adoption of human rights approaches is the persistent belief that they are inefficient, expensive, or permissive. bit.ly/3Xl1hEX
In practice, many punitive encampment strategies are more expensive than rights-based alternatives due to the cost of repeated encampment evictions, legal challenges, and emergency responses. Alexandra Flynn and Estair Van Wagner The Governance of Homeless Encampments in Canada Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
November 27, 2025 at 8:36 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
4/ The legal landscape continues to evolve, and recent court decisions have largely reinforced the limits of municipal authority to displace encampments in the absence of adequate alternatives. bit.ly/3Xl1hEX
Courts have affirmed that shelter beds must be accessible, appropriate, and voluntary to meet constitutional standards. Alexandra Flynn and Estair Van Wagner The Governance of Homeless Encampments in Canada Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
November 27, 2025 at 8:36 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
3/ Although the Charter does not contain a right to housing, courts have interpreted the Charter to provide minimum legal protections for unhoused people. bit.ly/3Xl1hEX
…[recent] cases have affirmed that, in the absence of accessible shelter or housing, enforcement of anti-camping bylaws can violate section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees the right to life, liberty, and security of the person. Alexandra Flynn and Estair Van Wagner The Governance of Homeless Encampments in Canada Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
November 27, 2025 at 8:36 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
2/ The regulation of homeless encampments represents one of the most complex and contested areas of municipal governance in Canada today. bit.ly/3Xl1hEX
Most municipalities remain caught in a reactive cycle – torn between political pressures to clear public spaces and recognition that punitive approaches are expensive and potentially unlawful, and do not solve the problem of homelessness. Alexandra Flynn and Estair Van Wagner The Governance of Homeless Encampments in Canada Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
November 27, 2025 at 8:36 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
5/ However, growth-related gains turn out to be temporary because the corresponding rise in population ultimately puts a strain on services and leads to an increase in per capita spending. bit.ly/FiscalGains
The divergent impacts of growth and size on municipal finances, however, call into question the sustainability of this gain. Jean-Philippe Meloche Fiscal Gains from Real Estate Development: The Case of Québec Municipalities Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
October 22, 2025 at 7:10 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
4/ Meloche adds that growing municipalities also benefit significantly from one-time growth-related revenues such as building permits, land transfer taxes, and development charges. bit.ly/FiscalGains
... growing municipalities had additional revenues equivalent to almost 7 percent of their tax revenues, compared with non-growing municipalities. Jean-Philippe Meloche Fiscal Gains from Real Estate Development: The Case of Québec Municipalities Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
October 22, 2025 at 7:10 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
3/ Jean-Philippe Meloche shows that faster-growing municipalities tend to experience smaller increases or even decreases in their property tax rates, indicating a fiscal gain from development. bit.ly/FiscalGains
Québec municipalities with a population of 1,000 or more that had stronger real estate or population growth from 2008 to 2018 were also those in which tax rates increased the least (or decreased the most) over that period. Jean-Philippe Meloche Fiscal Gains from Real Estate Development: The Case of Québec Municipalities Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
October 22, 2025 at 7:10 PM
imfgtoronto.bsky.social
2/ New IMFG paper examines the relationship between municipal growth and property taxation in Quebec to evaluate the fiscal impact of real estate development on municipalities. bit.ly/FiscalGains
Although growth generates fiscal gains for municipalities, a larger size leads to higher per-capita spending. Jean-Philippe Meloche Fiscal Gains from Real Estate Development: The Case of Québec Municipalities Logos for IMFG, University of Toronto, School of Cities
October 22, 2025 at 7:10 PM
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Dusting off this all-star paper 'A New Agenda for Local Democracy: Building Just, Inclusive,
and Participatory Cities' via Brittany Andrew-Amofah, Alexandra Flynn, & Patricia Wood

h/t @uoftcities.bsky.social & @imfgtoronto.bsky.social

Cc: @progresstoronto.bsky.social

imfg.org/research/doc...
Title Page: IMFG Papers on Municipal Finance and Governance No. 60 • 2022 A New Agenda for Local Democracy: Building Just, Inclusive, and Participatory Cities Brittany Andrew-Amofah, Alexandra Flynn, and Patricia Wood About IMFG The Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance (IMFG) is an academic research hub and non-partisan think tank based in the School of Cities at the University of Toronto. IMFG focuses on the fiscal health and governance challenges facing large cities and cityregions. Its objective is to spark and inform public debate, and to engage the academic and policy communities around important issues of municipal finance and governance. The Institute conducts original research on issues facing cities in Canada and around the world; promotes high-level discussion among Canada’s government, academic, corporate, and community leaders through conferences and roundtables; and supports graduate and post-graduate students to build Canada’s cadre of municipal finance and governance experts. It is the only institute in Canada that focuses solely on municipal finance issues in large cities and city-regions. IMFG is funded by the City of Toronto, the Regional Municipality of York, the Regional Municipality of Halton, the Neptis Foundation, Avana Capital Corporation, and Maytree. Authors Brittany Andrew-Amofah is a leader in municipal policy and has worked in various policy, political, and media roles over the last 10 years. Her expertise focuses on social policy within a Canadian context, combining her passion for civic engagement and local governance. Brittany has a Master’s in Political Management from Carleton University, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Science with a specialization in social policy and equity from York University. Dr. Alexandra Flynn is an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law. Her teaching and research focus on municipal law and governance, including Indigenous-municipal legal relationships. She is currently working on several projects related to precariously housed people in Canadian cities. She has a long history of volunteer work in the areas of homelessness and access to justice, is a TEDx speaker, and i Abstract There is a crisis of growing inequality in Canadian cities. As COVID-19 spread through Canadian cities beginning in spring 2020, racial inequities became apparent, including biased enforcement of bylaws and higher coronavirus rates amongst racialized and vulnerable communities. These health care injustices exposed municipal decisions that have led to negative outcomes for marginalized groups, especially in policing, community safety, housing, homelessness, and bylaw enforcement. In response, cities have been called upon – again – to change their governance models to allow for greater participation and better include the voices and lived realities of racialized and marginalized people in decision-making processes. In a post-pandemic period of city building, where socio-economic and racial inequalities have been exposed, municipalities must incorporate social equity and explicit race-based lenses in their decision-making and reimagine their governance practices. This paper sets out the ways in which municipal governance frameworks have worked to exacerbate inequality, with suggestions on how cities can design more democratic and responsible models. These include greater engagement with equity-deserving communities and community bodies, modifications to existing governance models, and legislative changes. Key words: municipal governance, inequality, justice, inclusion, public consultation, local democracy, public participation, citizen engagement JEL Codes: D63, D73, Z18
September 29, 2025 at 10:48 AM