His videos of life on the streets in Hamilton can be jarring. But Penny O'Radical aims for an unvarnished view of his first-hand experience with homelessness.

"I just want to give an honest, clear perspective of what's going on," said O'Radical, who didn't want to use his real name due to a criminal case still before court.

One of his YouTube videos shows a man berating reception staff at the Salvation Army on York Boulevard.

Another focuses on crack pipes and bag valve masks — used by emergency responders to help people breathe — left in washrooms after overdoses.

He also comments on Hamilton's cancelled LRT project; the demolished apartment where he once bought drugs; the types of people who stay at shelters.

The videos — shot on a cellphone and edited with basic software — are a raw tour of addiction and desperation in downtown Hamilton.

In an interview, the 38-year-old said he dabbled in video editing when he was younger. He also channelled his creativity into standup comedy, improv and music.

O'Radical — his name online — recounted growing up in a middle-class household in the North End before his steelworker dad went from the Stelco line to sales and moved the family to the Mountain.

This time, and two years ago, he became homeless after what he described as a confluence of factors that included job loss, addiction and jail time.

Penny O'Radical became homeless after what he described as a confluence of factors that included job loss, addiction and jail time. | Barry Gray/The Hamilton Spectator

"Quite often, you can't juggle all of those balls and you end up homeless."

He declined to detail his charges but said they stem from substance abuse.

People with addictions and those with mental illnesses, or both, are some of the "archetypes" at shelters, he said. Others are guys fresh out of jail or those who've lost jobs.

He acknowledged these are generalized categories. Everyone has a story.

O'Radical came to know the grind of shelter life during months-long spells at the Salvation Army on York Boulevard.

It's a tough place where exiting inmates try to impose jailhouse rules on the vulnerable. "They end up really scared, and they end up really intimidated, but they have no choice: it's either that or sleep on the street."

In part, the crowded shelter conditions that come with winter and personalities clashing in closer quarters motivated him to leave the shelter.

Now, he's crashing at a place downtown as he looks to get back onto his feet.

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O'Radical described the Salvation Army as a "last resort" among local shelters that's doing its best with the resources it has.

In 2018, nearly 3,000 people stayed in Hamilton shelters with occupancy hovering at capacity in winter and tapering off in warmer months.

In recent years, the city and agencies in the homeless-serving sector have aimed to prevent people from winding up in shelters and minimize stays by trying to quickly rehouse them.

This is reflected in the 23 projects city staff have recommended share roughly $7 million in provincial and federal funding.

"The recommended investments in housing with support interventions will more than double the number of permanent housing placements and in-home case management supports, from 350 program spaces to 732," notes a report before councillors next week.

"By implementing a robust system of care, occupancy pressures within the emergency shelter system may incrementally decrease over time."

Good Shepherd will use the funding for more "evidence-based practices" that focus on such approaches as rapid rehousing, eviction prevention and shelter diversion, chief operating officer Katherine Kalinowski said Wednesday.

"I think that this funding builds on the services that we've been providing over the last several years, and we'll see, hopefully, an ability for us to expand them."

Mission Services plans to build people's capacity to stay housed by providing ongoing support, said Shawn MacKeigan, director of men's services.

That involves rehousing people and tackling such barriers as poor credit, lack of rental history, mental illness and addiction. "We don't want to see people delaying their re-entry into their own accommodations because of factors they can receive support and service for while housed."

Once homeless, it can be a difficult state to remedy, especially amid rising rents, inadequate social assistance and lack of family support, O'Radical said.

"When you get down to that level, it's really hard to pull yourself back out."

tmoro@thespec.com

905-526-3264 | @TeviahMoro