Nova Scotia spends $3M for new 50-bed temporary shelter in Halifax

The multipurpose centre at the Halifax Forum complex is mostly used for community events.

Later this month, the 18,000-square foot building will be used to support the community in a different way.

“It’s Canada. It’s winter, and so we need to provide support for people so they are not living outside and risking their lives and their health,” says Halifax Mayor Mike Savage.

The shelter will initially offer 50 beds – 35 for men and 15 for women. There is capacity to increase that to 70 during extreme weather events.

The city is offering the building and will bring in mobile showers, the Minister of Community Services Trevor Boudreau says. The province is covering the $3 million cost of staff, meals and wrap-around services.

“We will work with the outreach workers and navigators who work in HRM. They will be reaching out to those individuals that are living rough and encourage them to reach out so it’s really through the service providers and outreach workers that will determine who goes in.”

Ric Young is staying in a tent at grand parade outside city hall. He says most shelters have rules that discourage people from moving in.

“I’m guessing there’s not anybody in this park who’s going to go,” Young says, referring to the new shelter. “People believe that we want to stay here in this park. Nobody wants to be here. It’s cold, it’s damp, it’s terrible, but nobody wants to go to a shelter where you feel like you’re in jail, where you have to be in at 12 o’clock.”

Max Chauvin, Halifax’s director of Housing and Homelessness, says the shelter will be a bit different for the people staying there.

Tents are pictured outside city hall in Halifax.

“There will be a lot of consultation with the people who are homeless to ask them what do they need, what’s important? If they’re hesitant to access a service, why?” says Chauvin.

Advocate Stephen Wilsack says while this is a good first step, permanent solutions are the answer to getting people off the streets.

“Housing first. That’s the main objective and what I mean by that is that residents want and need their own space and that space requires wraparound services or support services that allow them to have their independence.”

Storage will be provided to secure people's belongings and curtains will be used to create privacy.

Halifax Mayor Mike Savage and director of housing and homelessness Max Chauvin are pictured on Jan. 8, 2023.

Solutions to a couple concerns city officials hope will be enough to encourage people to move into the shelter for the winter.

“We’re going to provide that kind of security for folks, and they won’t have to worry about what happens to their possessions while they’re being sheltered,” Savage says.

“Every single place will have its own power outlet so that people will be able to charge their phone or other devices while they’re right in their own space,” adds Chauvin.

The city is offering the facility free of charge. The shelter will operate 24/7 from January 22 to August 31.

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