Review highlights challenges facing Timmins homeless shelter
A special city council meeting in Timmins on Wednesday evening focused on the future of the Living Space homeless shelter and a report highlighting issues that need to be resolved.
A presentation to council sparked discussion around what a better shelter and services could look like -- and that changes will cost more money than is currently available.
“Homelessness will get worse in Canada, and it will get worse in northern Ontario, and it will get worse in Timmins,” Cochrane District Social Services Administration Board director Brian Marks told councillors.
Marks said the pressure is on to take creative action to make the homeless shelter his agency funds better and improve the city’s mental health and addictions care system.
A review of Living Space found that people feel it’s not run effectively, doesn’t offer enough support to clients and that its location makes nearby residents feel unsafe.
Hearing those findings, some city councillors felt the shelter should be moved and re-imagined.
“More of a one-stop, so one place they can attend and we’d have the agencies 24/7,” said Coun. John Curley.
A special city council meeting in Timmins on Wednesday evening focused on the future of the Living Space homeless shelter and a report highlighting issues that need to be resolved. (File)
Marks agreed that the city needs more shelters and that his agency is working to fix issues that arose from the review. But he said the situation is at a point where the community needs to work with what it already has.
“We need to change the way we do things because there is no more money to be able to add resources, to dedicate those solely to homelessness,” Marks said.
Money to 'fix this'
Coun. Steve Black remarked that someone does have the money to fix this.
“This collective group should be going down to the province and saying, ‘This is our issue. You have failed to address this issue,’” Black said.
“Maybe the funding comes from the federal government and they’re not committing it. Invite them to the same table.”
The review didn’t include a concrete action plan moving forward, leaving some in the audience with mixed feelings.
“There wasn’t a lot of answers that I expected to hear,” one person in attendance told CTV News.
“I was expecting more, moving forward, hearing about rehabilitation and other options, but there wasn’t much discussion of it.”
o Download our app to get local alerts on your device
o Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
But Mayor Michelle Boileau said the review was a starting point for action.
“We are looking for ways to be able to move forward and move through this, and so you did present tangible action items,” Boileau said.
“I think the city has to take the lead in leading this challenge, with a whole bunch of shared partners within our community,” Marks added.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games Tuesday following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.
Air France flight from Paris to Seattle lands in Iqaluit after heat smell in cabin
A plane travelling from Paris to Seattle was forced to make an emergency landing in Iqaluit after there was a heat smell in the cabin during the flight.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.