The long wait will finally be over for Toronto Swifties — and, let's face it, Swifties from across Canada and the world over — when Taylor Swift's sold-out six-night Eras Tour stint gets underway starting tomorrow (November 14) at the Rogers Centre. The city's been decked out for the occasion with street signs, adoptable shelter kitties named after the pop star's songs and more, but the buzzing excitement for her arrival has been far overshadowed by anxiety for some residents of the downtown area that's soon to be overcrowded with concertgoers adorned in sequins and friendship bracelets.
As the Toronto Star reports, the city is clearing tents belonging to unhoused people near the Rogers Centre in preparation for the concert crowds, with a spokesperson telling the publication, "The individuals surrounding Rogers Centre are being offered a space in the city's shelter system to help ensure their safety."
The unhoused population living in a "radius around the Rogers Centre" of undisclosed size reportedly only included two people — one of whom told the Star yesterday (November 12) that they were being moved to a hotel that the city of Toronto was paying for.
Chris, who goes by Crystofur, 26, told the newspaper that they cried "tears of relief" upon being offered a hotel room at Islington Avenue and the 401, with the city adding that those living at the hotel can "stay as long as they require the services."
Crystofur had lived in a tent in Roundhouse Park across from the Rogers Centre for 12 days, saying that it was a safe place (despite police telling them to move their tent twice), with security cameras and people being around at all hours. They said it was a personal record to have not had their phone stolen throughout the entire duration of their stay.
"I don't feel safe anywhere, but in this park I feel very safe," Crystofur said, adding, "Being in an encampment would be my downfall. I fall back into bad habits. I fall back into drugs. I'm not saying I'm completely clean right now, but I'm doing better than I've ever done."
"Moving folks out of sight of tourists is not a policy solution," Savhanna Wilson, acting executive director of the Toronto Alliance to End Homelessness, told the publication, predicting that we'll see similar proceedings in the lead-up to the 2026 World Cup. "It's not helping people in encampments. It's not addressing the root cause of these encampments, which is the lack of affordable housing."
It goes without saying that a high volume of traffic is expected near the stadium for Swift's shows. The city expects that as many as 500,000 people might be downtown during the concerts, which run through November 23. Destination Toronto, a marketing organization for the tourism industry, estimated that the Eras Tour will increase Toronto's local economy by nearly $300 million.