Photo credit: Toronto Life
The weather is getting colder, and Toronto’s homeless population is getting bigger.CBC News reports that the city is opening additional temporary shelter spaces, warming centres, and respite sites. However, the staff say more than this will be needed to meet the needs of people living on the street.
The city released its Winter Services Plan for people experiencing homelessness on Tuesday. It said an additional 530 temporary spaces in existing shelters and three temporary respite centres will be available from November 15 through April 15. Other emergency centres will also be available.The city’s head of shelter and support services, Gord Tanner, told reporters, “Toronto continues to see extreme pressures on our emergency shelter system.
“We’re doing everything we can to accommodate this growing need. The shelter system is operating at capacity each night.”
The city shelters about 12,000 people each night on average, up from 10,700 last year. Over 9,500 people are in the city’s shelter system, and another 2,600 are sheltered in hotels.
However, the city still turns away over 200 people looking for shelter beds each night. The warming centres will also open on colder days. They will offer space for people to rest and have access to meals and bathrooms.
However, advocates are disappointed by the “shortcomings” in the plan.
An outreach worker with Sanctuary Toronto, Greg Cook, said the plan doesn’t add much compared to previous years, even though the homelessness crisis worsens. He said demand for the city’s shelter system is likely even higher than the city reports.
In a news release on Tuesday, the Shelter and Housing Justice Network, an advocacy group, called on the city to provide at least double the number of shelter beds it plans to add this winter and to pledge not to clear encampments while people have nowhere else to go
