By Tiffany Goodwein

New temporary winter shelter to provide food, laundry to residents

Oct 31, 2019 | 3:55 PM

A new 20-bed temporary winter shelter opening tomorrow will provide a number of services to those who are homeless.

The new temporary shelter will be located at the former Gateway building at 2800 33rd Street. Turning Points Collaborative Society will be responsible for operating the facility.

According to BC Housing, 24-hour support will be provided to guests who will be able to access the shelter on first come first serve basis from November 1 to March 31, 2020.

“Guests at the temporary shelter will have access to a place to sleep with linens, hot meals, showers, and laundry. Support staff will be on site to connect guests with health and wellness resources in the community. There will be no barriers to accessing the shelter to ensure that everyone who wants to connect with services and supports can do so,” said Carly Hunter, a media relations spokesperson for BC Housing.

The 24- hour program will replace the Mat program which was used last year to provide shelter to those left out in the cold in the winter months.

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On Oct. 1 the permanent Gateway shelter moved one building over to 2804 33rd Street in the old Kelpro building. The move allowed the Gateway Shelter to increase the number of shelter beds from 24 to 40.

The temporary reopening of the site came after a letter from the mayor to BC Housing indicated a need for more shelter spaces because current facilities were turning people away.

As previously reported, some members of council expressed concerns about the temporary shelter and questioned the need for the concentration of support services in the downtown core.

“We tell everyone in the neighbourhood that everything is temporary and don’t worry as soon as we build this infrastructure everything is going to go back to normal. Then we just keep loading on into that neighbourhood. And every time we add 20 more beds, 40 more people come,” Coun. Brian Quiring at Monday’s council meeting said.

“We’re not fair to those business owners in that area. We are just not. Why are we consolidating everything in that one area? We’ve got the mission, we’ve got People Place, we’ve got Linear Park, everything is all in one couple of square blocks. I’m all in favour of another 20 beds. Start moving them out. It’s a bit of a mob mentality there,” Quiring added.

In response, BC Housing said they will work together with the city and community to identify shelter sites.

“The level of need for shelter spaces is determined by the community. BC Housing will continue working closely with the city and our community partners to assess the community’s need and, if required, work together to identify other sites,” Hunter said.

At Monday’s council meeting CAO Will Pearce confirmed the city is looking at providing services outside the downtown core, they just need to find the appropriate land.

by Tiffany Goodwein

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