Crisis shelters in Halifax 'will be removed' says municipality
A volunteer group that built so-called "crisis shelters" in Halifax to help those in the city who are homeless is upset the municipality plans to take them down.
Halifax Mutual Aid built 13 of the small wooden framed structures throughout the city earlier this year. There are several in front of Halifax's old library on Spring Garden Road, and others scattered on both sides of the bridges.
The group says all of them are now fully occupied and says there are also 21 people on its waiting list.
"It was really important to us that people had somewhere safe with a roof over their head with a lock on their door," says group spokesperson Campbell McClintock.
When the first ones were erected in January, the city said Halifax Mutual Aid didn't have permission to build them on municipal land.
But at the time, it also said occupants would not be evicted unless they had somewhere else to go.
Now, McClintock says the city has been informing occupants they will soon be provided another place to stay.
"And what the city is offering is a hotel room for no longer than two weeks," says McClintock, "maybe longer, although there's no guarantee it will be longer."
"And there's no promise," he adds, "of housing after the hotel room."
McClintock believes once the crisis shelters are all empty, the city will take them down. He says city officials have never directly communicated with the group about the municipality's plans.
In an email statement provided late Wednesday to CTV News in lieu of a requested interview, the municipality confirmed McClintock's suspicions.
"These shelters cannot remain on-site indefinitely and will be removed" writes city public affairs advisor Maggie-Jane Spray. "A deadline has not yet been finalized."
"Placing anything in a park for the purpose of temporary or permanent accommodation is not permitted under By-Law P-600."
The city says staff have been working with the province and Street Outreach Navigators to find adequate housing for the people living in the temporary shelters.
According to the Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia, the city has not made measurable progress on homelessness, with about 400 people in the city still without homes. Half of those people have been homeless for six months or longer.
The association's executive director describes the current situation as "treading water" – in which the number of people who are homeless hasn't changed dramatically one way or the other.
Jim Graham says if the city is planning to move the occupants of the temporary shelters, it needs a long-term solution.
"It's easy to say let's, it's better in a hotel, it's safer, it's warmer," says Graham, "but if you think about how you exit that strategy, it's hard."
Graham says shelters are full, there's a lack of affordable housing, and recent Rapid Housing building projects have barely broken ground, if at all.
McClintock says many occupants using the shelters feel more at home there than they would in other accommodations, such as shelters.
"They're the best possible solution for a number of people who are going to be sleeping in tents or bank lobbies," he says.
Halifax Mutual Aid intends to hold a COVID safe rally at 2 p.m. Sunday at the old Halifax Memorial Library to highlight its concerns.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Nearly half of China's major cities are sinking, researchers say
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.
Judge says 'no evidence fully supports' murder case against Umar Zameer as jury starts deliberations
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn't over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball's highest scorer Caitlin Clark's first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
'Shopaholic' author Sophie Kinsella reveals brain cancer diagnosis
Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the 'Shopaholic' book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
U.S. vetoes widely supported resolution backing full UN membership for Palestine
The United States vetoed a widely backed UN resolution Thursday that would have paved the way for full United Nations membership for Palestine, a goal the Palestinians have long sought and Israel has worked to prevent.