It has to balance out sympathy to the homeless versus tax dollars. How many people floated here from their home towns when time was good only to realize that the cost of living in Calgary was extremely high for someone working for minimum wage.
I'm all for taking care of the homeless especially if their mentally ill, however, if we're going to build cheap or free housing the last thing that we want to do is make it appealing so that all of the homeless from other cities flow here in order to take advantage of this. Frankly we're not here to solve other cities homeless problems.
I don't know how to solve it, but to me a time based visa system could be implemented for people that come to Calgary without jobs asking for social assistance. Give them 3 months to find work and get on their feet, and if they don't then you give them a bus ticket home.
For the mentally ill, maybe transfer them to facilities in the cities or regions that they come from.
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My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
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