Bruce County council received a report surrounding the noticeable pressures on its homelessness response system.
The report outlined both a large spike in demand and its associated increased cost.
Director of Human Services Ian Hanney presented the report on Thursday’s meeting.
“Importantly, these pressures… are not unique to Bruce County. Communities across Ontario are experiencing similar increases in homelessness, longer shelter stays, and growing service complexity. Staff continue to work proactively on prevention, diversion, housing stabilization, and housing development initiatives, however, the demand is increasing faster than availability of appropriate housing options,” he said.
The county provides homelessness prevention and housing stability under the Housing Services Act.
Increased pressures are due to a number of affordability pressures, including an increase in rental costs and an increase in the cost of living, as well as low vacancy rates and limited supply of affordable housing.
In 2025, the county’s total expense for providing a total of 6,205 shelter nights was $706,213.
The estimated cost for providing 22,670 emergency shelter nights this year could exceed $2.28 million, as well as create a much larger pressure for 2027.
An additional obstacle for the homelessness response program over the summer also includes a limited availability of motel rooms to temporarily shelter those without anywhere to go.
Director of Corporate Services Lynn Hatten explained that staff in the Human Services department is working with the Corporate Services team to evaluate options for the funding that’s currently in place, and how best to look ahead when budgeting for the 2027 budget.
“We are then looking through those numbers and coming forward with a recommendation on what we need to budget for emergency shelter in order to support the immediate need, but also what things can we build into our budget looking further into the future to try to help resolve the issue instead of just putting money to emergency shelter. So there are a number of pieces and there will likely be a levy impact to those components and we are still working through the details of that now. In terms of 2026 where we do already see that spending above the budgeted level, we are working as a senior leadership team to manage those costs within the existing approved budget for the county, using surpluses in other places to offset those costs make sure that we can continue to deliver the supported service,” said Hatten.
In 2025/2026, over 70% of emergency housing expenditures were associated with stays exceeding 15 days, indicating that the program is not operating as originally intended under an acute housing crisis response framework, with service patterns reflecting longer-term occupancy and support needed, according to the report.
Failure to address this funding pressure may result in:
– Reduced emergency housing capacity
– Increased risk of unsheltered homelessness
– Service reductions
– Increased pressure on health, emergency response, and community support systems.
The interdepartmental team is focusing its efforts on prioritizing housing opportunities, strengthening its homelessness prevention strategies, and pursuing external funding and housing development partnerships.