The mayors of Ontario’s 29 largest cities are calling on the province to declare a state of emergency as municipalities deal with what they call a “community safety and humanitarian crisis” created by homelessness, mental health and addiction.

Ontario Big City Mayors urges the province to provide more funding and engage more actively with cities and other stakeholders in a motion passed unanimously on Friday.

The mayors caucus says municipalities covered more than 50 per cent of the $4.1 billion spent on homelessness and housing programs in 2024.

Caucus chair Marianne Meed Ward, the mayor of Burlington, Ont., says it is not sustainable for cities to continue funding at this rate and they have already “dug deep.”

She says addressing homelessness should not depend on property tax dollars

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