The Current Homelessness in Canada's smaller communities
Feb 4, 2026
Tim Richter, national homelessness advisor; Colleen Smook, mayor of Thompson tackling northern service gaps; Kim Chamberlain, mayor of Bathurst leading modular housing projects. They discuss rising homelessness in small communities. They describe encampments, warming centres, shelter capacity, housing shortages, rent hikes, and the need for coordinated senior-government support.
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Lived Experience Of Small-Town Homelessness
- Tracy Litchfield and her partner lived in a motorhome after a year in a compound with no power or water.
- Tracy says stigma from residents made survival harder and urged kindness and rent caps.
Rapid Shift In Small-City Homelessness
- Bathurst moved from virtually no visible homelessness in 2021 to 61 people counted in 2025.
- Mayor Kim Chamberlain attributes the rise mainly to post-pandemic cost-of-living pressures and housing shortages.
Cold Winters And Visible Encampments
- Thompson has long had unsheltered people and used overflow shelters during extreme cold.
- Colleen Smook says pit counts show about 284 but the visible number can be nearer 500 at times.