November 7, 2023 – There’s stupid, and then there’s Cornwall stupid. As they say, “You get the government you deserve.”.
Nobody is owed housing. Or food even. We live in a society where we give lip service to taking care of those who can’t or won’t take care of themselves. Sometimes it just makes financial sense to spend a little rather than spend more in healthcare, policing and other societal costs.
It’s been popular over the last few years in Cornwall to see homeless tent villages pop up along the river. Not sure why as it’s usually full of mosquitoes, but then again campfire smoke may keep them down while putting the area at risk.
This writer wrote over a decade ago about an impending housing crisis as the city did nary a thing while letting literally, HUNDREDS of rental properties go condo, many in an area where they were needed most.
Most of the grifters on Cornwall city council have never really earned a living without it being on someone’s teet. Heck, the mayor may still live with his parents as one of his fellow councilors loves to complain about.
Local paralegal Lisa Duchene was pleased to see any action on behalf of the Cornwall Encampment. This a start she was quoted as saying.
So after a woman was found deceased in a tent, and the CBC exposed it thus giving Cornwall, a city that doesn’t seem to really care about how low its community sinks to, has sent over a City bus to the homeless people by the river, and fast tracked about nearly a dozen into the new sorta ugly looking condo that they built across Freshco.
The units of course cost more (nearly $300K) to build than most law abiding hard working residents of Cornwall could afford. Did these folks pass credit checks? First and last rent? Or did the city pay for those too? Does this face saving sham make any sense? Is this a good allocation of tax dollars? This writer thinks not. It’s a total sphincter move, and certainly not sustainable.
One city worker alleged that nearly 20 more people will be housed in the shiny units shortly.
And why were the units still available even? Is it because many in Cornwall Housing simply can’t afford the rent being asked of those units? How many on Cornwall Housing’s waiting list have been waiting 5, 10, or more years without being offered one of these units?
This writer developed a plan to have a temporary Tiny Home village created to take the pressure off of the housing crisis in the region, especially in Cornwall and South Stormont. Crickets.
Units would cost less than $50K, and would be movable. There are empty schools and industrial buildings that could give people a bed, hot shower, and protection from the elements. Isn’t it a better focus to help people out of crisis than to house them forever? Do we really owe everyone a home?
But is Cornwall Ontario really interested in helping those in need, or is Mayor Justin Towndale and his circus troupe just interested in not looking bad on the CBC and internet?
jamie@cornwallfreenews.com