Summerside men's shelter opening Monday after months of delays - Action News
Home WebMail Thursday, November 14, 2024, 11:39 AM | Calgary | 6.4°C | Regions Advertise Login | Our platform is in maintenance mode. Some URLs may not be available. |
PEI

Summerside men's shelter opening Monday after months of delays

Six beds will be available to those in need of housing at 287 Winter St. starting Monday morning, to help address a dire need for housing in the P.E.I. city.

Organizer hopes 6-bed facility that will operate 24/7 will be 'life-changing'

A two story building.
The shelter's opening was planned forDecember when Summerside City Councilgave the project the green light, but renovations took longer than expected. (Tony Davis/CBC)

Summerside'snew men's shelter is finally ready to open followingseveral months of delays.

Six beds will be available to those in need of housing at 287 Winter St.starting Monday morning.

When Summersidecouncillors gave the project the green light, the shelter's opening was planned forDecember, but renovations took longer than expected.Opening day was pushed back to April 1before being delayed once again.

The Native Council of P.E.I. originally pitched the need for such a shelter, and will be managing it.

Scott Carnall, the council's housing development officer, said he hopes the six beds will help address a dire need for housing in the city even if they're not enough to solve the entire problem.

A bearded man in pink polo, standing in a hall.
Scott Carnall says the shelter is a 'drop in the bucket' when it comes to solving the city's homelessness problem. (Tony Davis/CBC)

"We're a drop in the bucket of what is needed, but for six people at a time, it is going to be a big change,life-changing for them," Carnall said.

"That's what we are focusing on, is that we will take six people out a time and move forward with that."

Will be a 24/7 service

The shelter will be open to any men who need it. There's no requirement for people to be sober to access its services, but they won't be allowed to bring any illegal substances into the building.

"We have what is called an initial assessment," said shelter managerRoberta Cosgrove. "It will just be basic information, reasoning for needing the shelter.

"If we do have a bed available, we will bring them in throughthe full intake,which is a little more in-depth on what they are looking for, for the future... If we're full, we have that initial basic assessment to put them on a waiting list."

Two beds in a room.
Some rooms have two beds, others just one. (Tony Davis/CBC)

The shelter has a full kitchen, a recreational areaand laundry facilities, as well as lockers. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are provided.

The shelter will operate 24 hours a day.

"If we have bed availability and they come in and it's pouring out, they can have a place. Or if they just got to Summerside," Cosgrove said. "I think it is just very important to have those services24/7."

Once the clients are in, the plan is to connect them with services they may need, such as help with job hunting or housing applications, the Native Council said.

"There's a large population in Summerside that's slowly being housed out by higher rents and lack of jobs. There'slot of people moving onto the streets, a lot of people couch-surfing," Carnall said.

"A lot of people are struggling to find rentable accommodations, and it's really causing a strain."