Montréal’s mayor, Soraya Martinez Ferrada, expressed deep sorrow Thursday after learning of the deaths of two elderly individuals experiencing homelessness within the last 24 hours. The deaths underscore the growing crisis of homelessness in the city and the challenges faced by outreach organizations.
Martinez Ferrada revealed that both individuals were known to local community groups and were staying in shelters at the time of their deaths. She described the conditions in which one of them died – sitting in a chair – as unacceptable.
“The body suffers the consequences [of homelessness], which means people die earlier,” the mayor lamented, without providing further details about the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
Visibly emotional, Martinez Ferrada criticized the federal government for not renewing $24 million in funding for homelessness initiatives in Quebec. While the provincial government, led by the CAQ, has since compensated for the loss of funding, the mayor stressed the need for increased support.
“Organizations are at their breaking point; we must help them and produce this a national priority, this humanitarian crisis,” she pleaded.
I have a message for the people of Montréal: it is not normal that we lose people when we have the means to save them. It is not normal that all community organizations fight every day on the front lines to save lives.
Announcement on Cleanliness Feels Insignificant
The mayor had originally convened a press conference Thursday morning in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve to announce $412,000 in funding for the community organization L’Anonyme, aimed at ensuring cleanliness and security at the Notre-Dame encampment.
“Is it enough? Probably not,” Martinez Ferrada admitted. “We had hoped to do everything we could to prevent anyone from dying during the winter… We are doing what You can and even with everything we do, we have lost two people.”
We are announcing money for cleanliness. You understand that, in a context where we are losing two people experiencing homelessness, it loses some of its meaning.
Le responsable du développement social et de la cohabitation au comité exécutif, Benoit Langevin
Photo : Radio-Canada / Ivanoh Demers
Benoit Langevin, responsible for social development and cohabitation on the executive committee, likewise appeared visibly upset. “I don’t see what more we could do as a city,” he said, adding, “I know what it’s like to lose someone you see every day and attempt to reintegrate into society. These are people we know – someone’s brother, father, or uncle.”
Julien Montreuil, director general of L’Anonyme, praised the additional funding allocated to his organization but lamented that witnessing such deaths was not uncommon. “We are devastated each time. It’s the daily reality for our teams in the field – picking up the pieces, and it’s the reality for people in completely unacceptable situations.”
We are in a situation where crises are multiplying: overdose crises, housing crises, homelessness. […] We are not doing enough. Our society is a machine for creating homelessness.
Des déchets jonchent le sol dans le secteur du campement Notre-Dame, en février dernier.
Photo : Radio-Canada / Ivanoh Demers
The funding will allow for the deployment of a team of four outreach workers who will visit tents at the Notre-Dame encampment to provide psychosocial support and serve as a liaison between people experiencing homelessness – some of whom struggle with hoarding – and sanitation crews.
Chantal Gagnon, mayor of the Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve borough, noted that residents have recently complained about an accumulation of waste
in the area.
“I Urge Minister Bélanger”
Guillaume Cliche-Rivard, parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire, called on the provincial government to take action, criticizing the fact that the Plan d’action interministériel en itinérance, which allocated $280 million from 2021 to 2026, has not been adjusted for inflation or increased in five years.
“I urge Minister [of Health and Social Services Sonia Bélanger] to immediately release additional funds so that no services are lost” for community organizations.
“We are seeing more and more reports of resources closing down – women’s centers, day centers, various follow-up services,” he added.
We are not doing enough on homelessness. […] These are lives that we should have been able to save.
$30 Million for Homelessness
Combating homelessness was a key pledge during Mayor Martinez Ferrada’s election campaign. She has invested nearly $30 million in the issue for 2026, triple the amount from the previous year. Some 500 spaces have been added to warming shelters this winter, including in trailers near the Notre-Dame encampment.
Last month, the mayor also announced that the city would work with boroughs to designate tolerance zones for encampments erected by people experiencing homelessness, provided certain conditions are met, such as a minimum of three meters between tents. This effectively ends evictions, except in cases of imminent threat to public safety
.
Over the years, many people experiencing homelessness have pitched tents on Notre-Dame Street East, particularly on the stretch between Frontenac Street and Pie-IX Boulevard.
The encampment has been the subject of numerous evictions orchestrated by the city over the years, but people have consistently returned. The most recent eviction, in the summer of 2025, was blocked by the Superior Court following an emergency request from the Clinique juridique itinérante (CJI). The court is scheduled to rule on the merits of the case in 2026.
The CJI had argued to the judge that an eviction should be prevented until the Quebec government created more spaces in emergency shelters.
