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The original motion, first made public last week, did not contain any specific language around options for where people living in encampments would be able to go. 

Speaking with the Mercury Tribune Wednesday, Guthrie said it was always his intention to raise the prospect of a sanctioned encampment site during the Nov. 28 meeting, “but I realized because it wasn’t clearly stated in the actual motion that it left it up for interpretation that there was no intention to try to help people that are currently unhoused.�

“I actually want to try to help people find a place where they actually have more dignity and safety and more well-being and more amenities that can help them,� he added, pointing to bathrooms, electricity, garbage collection and secure storage for belongings.

“It was never my intention to be, if we got to a point where that was a removal of encampments, that we would just watch these people with a tent under their arm walk away in the distance.�

As for where people can go, Guthrie’s motion also calls on the county and local social service agencies “to immediately focus on further efforts for housing supports for those within all encampments� in the city. The mayor told the Mercury Tribune he wants to see those parties “double down on their efforts� to find these people homes.

“I’m very concerned about the cold weather coming upon us,� he added.

The mayor’s motion now explicitly calls for the involvement of those living in encampments, or have similar lived experiences, in determining the best options for what a sanctioned site would look like.

“It’s important that we work with these people as best as we can that are experiencing a lack of housing right now,� Guthrie said.

Guthrie’s motion also now calls for the creation of what the mayor refers to as a “safe public space use bylaw,� noting he has heard from downtown businesses that issues go beyond just tents.

“Beyond encampments, there’s a lot of behavioural issues that are taking place within the downtown that are causing a lot of concern for not only them as business owners, but for their customers, for visitors that are coming as well,� he said.

“That behavioral piece, I thought, was really important to make sure was added, and that speaks to things like drug paraphernalia, drug use out in the open, violence, confrontational behaviours, loitering and disrupting access to public spaces.�

As a comparison, Guthrie pointed to Kingston city council’s initial passage Tuesday evening of a community standards bylaw, which contains its own rules on the safe use of public space in that city. That part of the bylaw took up much of the debate, , with some saying it would unfairly target the unhoused, while others pointed to safety concerns in that city’s downtown.

“I’ve been following what Kingston has been dealing with as well, which is very similar to what’s happening in öÏÓãÊÓƵapp and is very similar to what’s happening in every downtown,â€� Guthrie said.

Guthrie acknowledged his motion is a balancing act between those facing homelessness and businesses in the downtown core.

“It’s not 51 per cent in favour of the downtown versus 49 per cent for people that are experiencing homelessness. It’s not weighted one more than the other — it’s a perfect balance of trying to give a human rights approach to housing for those that are experiencing homelessness the ability to find something that is better for them and their well-being,� Guthrie said.

“At the same time, we need a human rights approach to the public to be able to freely move and enjoy our public space, our public areas, where they can be free from some of the behavioral or obstructions that these types of things are causing.�