No love from the city; Toronto man in trouble after ‘illegally’ building shelters for homeless

BY JANIECE CAMPBELL

The city says that they are dangerous. He says that the city is doing nothing to help those on the streets.

Khaleel Seivwright, a dedicated carpenter, has been using his skills for good, helping to build what he calls “tiny shelters” for the unhoused people of Toronto. As the city was already in the midst of a housing crisis, he says that the COVID-19 pandemic only further intensifies it. With a willingness to make a change for those requiring temporary housing, he raised over $200,000 through GoFundMe to commit to his philanthropic project.

“With winter approaching, I knew that without shelter, people would die, as they do in Toronto every year. I started building tiny shelters so that some of the most vulnerable could have somewhere warm to go. The shelters I built are a small part of a temporary solution to keep people alive until they can access alternative housing,” he states in a video published on YouTube. “This pandemic has been a nightmare – particularly for those who don’t have a home. For those who relied on a 24-hour Tim Hortons or McDonalds to get out of the cold. For those who call into the shelter system over and over and can’t find a safe place to sleep.”

Unfortunately, his hard work and kindness have only gotten him into hot water with the city that he was trying to help. The City of Toronto isn’t too happy with Seivwright’s goodwill and are going forth to take legal actions in order to stop him from placing these wooden structures on city property.

“Instead of working with me, the city sued to stop me from building and relocating the tiny shelters. This is a distraction. The problem is not the tiny shelters. The problem is that Toronto’s most vulnerable people are falling through the cracks. Toronto’s emergency shelters are too often at capacity. People tell me they have nowhere to go. The money the city is spending to attack me could be put into safe housing for those that need it.”

In a press release, the city clarified that they are not exactly suing Seivwright, but instead, have applied for a court injunction. According to the application which has been made publicly available, the order will permanently restrain Seivwright from “placing and/or relocating structures on city-owned land or otherwise creating a nuisance or interfering with the city’s rights as owner and occupier of its land.”

Several safety concerns have arisen caused by encampments, including fires, gasoline generators, propane tanks, overdose, and lack of access to water and sanitation. In 2020, Toronto Fire Services responded to 253 fires in encampments, a whopping 250% increase over the same period in 2019. To date in 2021, there have been 27 fires in encampments, with at least three involving wooden structures.

Seivwright insists that each shelter that he’s built is equipped with a smoke and carbon monoxide detector, as well as a fire extinguisher.

The city estimates that they house approximately 6,000 people in their shelters on any given night, and at least 25 of the previously 40 new shelter locations created due to the pandemic are still currently open (an addition to the 75 already-existing base shelters run by the city.) Nevertheless, Seivwright urges that the city needs to do more for its displaced residents and worry less about the positive reinforcements he’s trying to construct.

“People who rely on the shelter system no longer trust it. The city’s reputation is terrible when it comes to providing safe and available shelters. We need to work together to support our vulnerable residents,” says Seivwright. “The City of Toronto should drop its application against me and focus its resources and efforts on what matters – getting people safely housed. It’s February. The City should not be removing or destroying tiny shelters until real alternatives exist and COVID-19 is under control.”

Toronto Caribbean Newspaper has reached out to Seivwright through his legal team, though he declined to comment due to the ongoing dispute with the city.