A temporary use permit has been granted for a temporary emergency shelter at 395 Elliott Street in West Quesnel.
It is for 16 beds and will run until the end of April.
Council made the decision at a meeting held at 10 a.m. last Tuesday, December 30th.
The vote was near unanimous, despite several concerns raised by each of the Councillors themselves.
Councillor Debra McKelvie said, “This feels really rushed for me to, and I feel ill-prepared to make a decision at this time because it’s such a huge issue. I do agree that we need to do something for the vulnerable people in our community, and we can’t have them freezing to death. However, this problem isn’t going to get smaller; it is going to get larger, whether we have 16 beds or 160 beds. What we need is detox rehabilitation and second-stage recovery in our communities, so for me, I can’t allow people to freeze to death. I feel this is rushed for me.”
Councillor Martin Runge agreed that it was rushed.
“I talked about the process in the beginning. I hate this process. Coming in here on the 30th at 10 o’clock is not fair to a tonne of people. This is an 11th-hour decision, a snap decision; we need as a community to come up with a proper solution. When I look at our timeline, we were supposed to have a solution by March. It should have been done last year, I don’t disagree with that, but to jump ahead of that and to start putting in three-year plans or two-year plans will undermine what I believe everybody is trying to create.”
Councillor Mitch Vik agreed that it was rushed and also questioned the location.
“We’re dealing with a neighbourhood which definitely has infrastructure in place that is helping those that are suffering with addictions, with health issues, and housing those that are, in some cases, being housed for the very first time, so they’re vulnerable. To add another layer of service, in this case, would be a cold weather shelter, to add that on top of all these other services in this very small area, I have a concern about.”
“In the summertime, citizens have reached out to me to address the major lawlessness that occurs at the very property in question here, and bylaw enforcement is stretched. Security, although it has been mentioned, is available at Northern Health. It’s ineffective. The lawlessness and the disregard for the well-being of our neighbours who live in that area struck me. To add this, layer this on top, I can’t agree to it. I just can’t.”
Councillor Scott Elliott, who is the Chair of Council’s Housing Committee, had a different take on the timing.
“We talk about it being rushed through. Okay, maybe things could be slowed down. But when it’s -27 degrees outside, I would say the rush should be in the other direction. Everyone deserves to have a roof over their head, and everyone deserves to be heated at night. I could not imagine being outside at -27. So, is this perfect? No. Do I have another location in mind? No. No one has come forward to me with another location in mind. I think at this point in time, the onus should be on us to create safe housing for people.”
Other concerns included safety in the area, particularly in the alley leading down to the shelter, which has been a highly targeted area for potential vandalism and damage.
Tammy Janzen, Executive Director of the Quesnel Shelter and Support Society, responded to some of those concerns, saying:
“The foot traffic down the alley, I have also raised this as a concern. Bridges Supportive Housing has, since opening, installed extra fencing along our property to reduce the amount of foot traffic, and my recommendation to BC Housing is that they do the same at this site that they’re proposing.”
“Responding to concerns about people congregating outdoors of the shelter. I don’t know how many times I’ve reported this, but we are a 25-capacity shelter with a homeless population, last counted at 131 people. When you have a 25 max capacity, where do the rest of those people go when there is nowhere designated for them?”
The temporary shelter is essentially a block away from Riverview Elementary School, which concerned School Trustee Julie-Anne Runge, who was there speaking on her own behalf.
“No one denies that there is a real growing need for support for people in our community. My concerns are with the location and the proximity, as it’s right down the hill from the elementary school, and the rushed nature of this proposal,” Runge said.
“There have been rising occurrences of community members who are under the influence entering schools, yelling at staff from the street, and sleeping in and around the schools. It’s impacting the school’s ability to provide a safe and enjoyable learning experience for all students. Schools are cancelling events outside. They’re cancelling neighbourhood activities due to the negative interactions.”
Janzen said she was only aware of one instance where the school had to cancel a cross-country run.
“I worked with her, offered solutions, gave my phone number, gave my card, and never heard anything back. So I am very concerned that the School District is still having concerns, but they’re not bringing them to my attention so that we can address them.”
Responding to concerns about what the community implications are if we do this, Janzen asked, “What are the community implications if we don’t?”
Councillor Laurey-Anne Roodenburg successfully suggested that the permit be for just one year, rather than the three years that BC Housing was requesting of Council, and that it then be reviewed again before next year.
In the end, just Councillor Tony Goulet was opposed.
“I agree. We really need to think this through. We need to look at how we can do this properly and beneficially to everybody within the community,” Goulet said. I’m not in favour of the way the resolution is written. I think we have a cold-weather plan that is being developed by the city, and we still need to do some work on it. It always comes down to the location and what the temperature is for when we open these emergency shelters. We need to come up with a hard plan that identifies how we’re going to make this work within the community.”
Councillor Goulet acknowledged there is a larger homeless count than there are beds, and potentially a larger count than has been projected. While saying there is a need to add more beds, Goulet brought to attention that there are more services within the Quesnel community, including potentially three places that house people that could add up to almost 80 beds, that could serve as potential locations, if, as Goulet pointed out, the City had a long-term comprehensive plan in the works, and in motion.
Goulet noted that there were a lot of pieces to this issue and that he needed some time to think this through.
In the end, the Quesnel Council voted by majority that the temporary shelter will open at the start of the New Year, ending April 30.
Council, BC Housing, and Northern Health confirmed that Northern Health will be providing security at the temporary shelter on Elliot Street at their locations. Security will consist of three patrols per night.
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