New shelter village site a 'bit of a service desert': councillor

CBC

3 days ago

The city has a lot of work to do if it's going to build its long-in-the-works temporary shelter village at the newly-approved site in the Intercity area, one councillor said.
City council on Monday chose what's known as the Hillyard site, which is located at the end of Alloy Place, next to the Hillyard Lands off-leash dog park. The approval came via a resolution moved by Coun. Mark Bentz.
The approval came after councillors voted against ratifying their earlier approval of 114 Miles St. E as the site for the village.
The Miles Street location was recommended by city administration.
The Hillyard site is "certainly not recommended and not yet supported by partners," said Coun. Brian Hamilton, who represents the McKellar Ward. The ward includes the Hillyard site (and also the Miles Street site).
"We still have some work to do reaching out to agencies to see how support would work, and and ultimately what that operational model will look like," he said.
The Hillyard site is forested, with access at the end of Alloy Place. It's surrounded by various commercial and industrial businesses.
"It's a bit of a service desert as far as services that the individuals we are looking to serve will be able to access," Hamilton said. "Transportation will ultimately pretty much be required for just about anything."
Hamilton added that there isn't infrastructure in place for pedestrians. "So lots of work to do. I don't even know what the situation is like for lights in the evening."
The Miles Street site was being recommended by administration for several reasons, including its readiness for construction and its proximity to various services the village occupants access.
The village, if it's built, would include sleeping cabins for people experiencing homelessness, as well as support services to help them transition to permanent housing.
"I think the value add was in the south core, where not only would we be able to provide the service, but we would we would certainly be able to clean up some of the tent realities down there, and help clean up some of the social issues, and certainly use the the facility as a as a transformative, transformational piece in addressing some of the social conditions on at the street level," Hamilton said.
City administration representatives were not available for interviews on Tuesday.
However, Cynthia Olsen, the city's director of strategy and engagement, sent a statement to CBC News.
"Council has approved the Hillyard Site, a treed lot at 879 Alloy Place, as the location for the Temporary Shelter Village. This marks an important step forward in addressing unsheltered homelessness in our community and supports the continued implementation of the City's 10-part enhanced encampment response plan," the statement read.