Chatham-Kent mayoral candidates outline differing approaches to homelessness

Chatham-Kent mayoral candidates Randy Hope, Lauren Anderson and Michael Bondy join AM800 host Kyle Horner for a debate in Windsor on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026, discussing issues including homelessness ahead of the municipal election. (Stefanie Masotti/CTV News Windsor)

Establishing an emergency shelter, expanding housing supports, and preventing homelessness before people lose their homes are among the approaches proposed by Chatham-Kent mayoral candidates.

The issue was a focus of an AM800 mayoral debate Thursday, where candidates Michael Bondy, Lauren Anderson and former mayor Randy Hope discussed how they would address homelessness in the municipality. Bondy and Anderson currently serve as Chatham-Kent councillors.

Incumbent Mayor Darrin Canniff was expected to join the debate by phone, but his campaign team said another commitment came up.

Bondy said Chatham-Kent’s immediate priority should be establishing an emergency shelter, pointing to the lack of a place for people to go when they suddenly lose their housing or need assistance in the middle of the night.

“We do not have a shelter,” Bondy stated, noting the municipality currently has transitional cabins but a long waiting list for those spaces.

He said a shelter would provide an immediate option for people experiencing homelessness and could also give the municipality a place to relocate people living in encampments.

“The encampments are not good for the people that live there. They’re not good for the people that live around them,” Bondy said, adding that the encampments are growing and can pose safety concerns.

Bondy suggested the former YMCA building in Chatham as a potential location for a shelter, noting it had previously been used for student housing affiliated with St. Clair College.

He estimated the building could accommodate about 200 people and said it appeared to be close to ready for use, although its suitability would need to be assessed.

With winter approaching, Bondy said the municipality needs to act quickly on emergency shelter options while also developing a longer-term plan for transitional housing.

Hope proposed breaking homelessness into several categories, including people dealing with mental health and addiction challenges, working people unable to afford housing and seniors struggling to manage rising costs on fixed incomes.

He said addressing the issue requires different responses for those groups, including more supportive housing, improved access to mental health and addiction programs, and greater assistance for people struggling to afford rent.

“We need to make sure that we are more proactive in the issue of dealing with supportive housing,” Hope said, adding that the municipality has not done enough to reduce waiting lists for housing assistance.

Hope also called for federal and provincial governments to help address mental health and addiction challenges, including changes to legislation and the development of community-based programs.

He said seniors receiving Old Age Security, the Guaranteed Income Supplement and Canada Pension Plan benefits also need attention, pointing to rising property taxes and other expenses.

Anderson, meanwhile, argued that the municipality needs to focus on preventing homelessness and connecting people with supports before their circumstances deteriorate.

The nurse of 16 years and Wheatley area councillor said she had accompanied Chatham-Kent’s mobile crisis unit on three occasions, joining a police officer and mental health nurse during visits to encampments.

Anderson said the experience reinforced her belief that people experiencing homelessness should not be defined by their circumstances.

“First and foremost, we need to get to those people and encourage them to do better,” she said.

“We need to prevent it instead of us going through and saying, okay, how do we manage this? No, no, no, we manage it by not being an issue in the first place. We prevent it.”

Anderson said that means keeping people housed and connecting families with mental health care, addiction services, employment opportunities and housing supports before they reach a crisis.

She also called for greater compassion when discussing homelessness, arguing that the circumstances behind each person’s situation need to be considered.

The three candidates offered their views as Chatham-Kent heads toward the Oct. 26 municipal election.

In addition to Canniff, Bondy and Anderson, the mayoral race includes Hope, who previously served three terms as mayor before losing the 2018 election, Wallaceburg-area farmer Nelson Burm, April Colby, and political newcomer Ryan Gow.

The other candidates did not participate in Thursday’s AM800 debate.