Windsor mayor accuses Ottawa of trying to download costs of hosting asylum seekers
Drew Dilkens says the federal government wants cities to propose solutions for welcoming newcomers
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens is accusing the federal government of trying to download costs onto the city associated with helping asylum seekers.
Changes to a federal program that provides municipalities with funding to help house asylum seekers aims to phase out federal contributions by 2027, Dilkens said.
"This is not about not supporting immigration," he said.
"This is an issue of Windsorites being expected to shoulder the financial burden associated with asylum claimants and for our shelter system to shoulder the resource burdens resulting from federal mismanagement of this complex portfolio."
Canada has experienced an increase in asylum claims since 2017, according to the website for the Interim Housing Assistance Program (IHAP).
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has been paying to house many of those claimants in Windsor hotels, even though many did not arrive at a Windsor port of entry.
Currently, there are approximately 728 asylum claimants in two hotels, the city said in a news release..
But the government periodically evicts claimants from hotels after they have lived there for a period of time, said Andrew Daher, the city's commissioner of human and health services.
If any of those individuals subsequently end up in the shelter system, Windsor can apply to the IHAP program to reimburse its costs.
In 2023, it received approximately $106,000, Dilkens said.
But now, Daher said, the federal government is asking cities to propose long-term solutions to welcoming and supporting asylum seekers, backed up with funding.
IHAP will only provide partial funding for the initiatives through 2026 and withdraw completely in 2027, Dilkens said.
CBC has reached out to the immigration ministry for clarity and response to the city's complaints. It has not yet received a response.
It's unclear exactly how much the city might spend to support asylum seekers.
All of the 191 claimants who were to be out of their hotels by Jan. 15 have found accommodations or left the municipality, Daher said.
Asked how many asylum seekers seek shelter at the Downtown Mission, executive director Rukshini Ponniah-Goulin replied by text, "Not too many."
But another 136 claimants face eviction on Feb. 3 and another 519 on March 3, Dilkens said.
Many asylum seekers have jobs, refugee claimant says
One asylum claimant from Lebanon told CBC that around 60 per cent of the claimants staying at the hotel he was in had jobs.
But Mohamed Hamie, who arrived in April and will be moving into a two-bedroom apartment with his family, said he has struggled to find stable, full-time work despite 12 years of experience as a software engineer.
"It's hard for a newcomer to find a job," he said.
Dilkens said city staff are advising council not to participate in the federal government's amended IHAP program and instead to advocate for a continuation of complete federal funding for asylum seekers.
But the executive director of Matthew House Refugee Welcome Centre in Windsor is urging the city to reconsider.
Mike Morency said the federal government recognizes that the hotel program isn't working and is looking to create a successful system for refugee settlement — like the one Matthew House operates.
His charity has put forward a proposal to the city to secure and scale up the work Matthew House already does at a cost to Windsor taxpayers of $232,000 over two years – and with a $3.7 million contribution from Ottawa.
There would be no requirement for the City of Windsor to provide ongoing funding, he said.
The money would allow Matthew House to purchase its two buildings, eliminating its lease payments and property taxes and allowing it to put the freed-up funding into enhanced programming.
Morency has requested permission to speak to council and pitch the proposal on Monday when it considers the government's new program changes.
"I think there are some disconnects in understanding … what the federal government is expecting," he said.
"I totally respect the the City of Windsor not wanting to put themselves in a situation where they would be on the hook for a $50 million program," he said, referring to a number mentioned by Daher during Wednesday's news conference.
"As a City of Windsor taxpayer, I would be really upset if they did. But I also as a City of Windsor taxpayer would be upset if we turn away $3.7 million coming into our community to invest in a valuable program for people that are coming into our community anyway."
The only reason Windsor supports so many asylum seekers is because it has the hotel space, Morency added. But a new system that doesn't rely on hotels will relieve pressure on the city.
Matthew House is working with partners across the province to create a network of shelters and settlement services to spread out the work and welcome newcomers into communities excited to receive them, he said.
"Come March, either we will be on our way to this, a system where we're going to have better results, and refugee claimants are dispersed better throughout communities in Ontario and beyond, or we won't," Morency said.
"The money will be gone because we're on our way to a federal election and quite possibly a new federal government. …That's where we will be if we spend too much time arguing about whose responsibility it is, and we don't take advantage of this opportunity."
With files from Chris Ensing