Manitoba announces $5.7M plan for up to 250 rental units to help homeless people this winter
Ozten Shebahkeget | CBC News | Posted: December 15, 2023 8:06 PM | Last Updated: December 16
Plan includes 128 Manitoba Housing units available immediately, minister says
The Manitoba government says it is investing $5.7 million into a new strategy to prevent homelessness over the winter.
Phase 1 of the initiative involves a $2.8-million investment to provide up to 250 rental units that will offer support services, including mental health and addictions programs, Housing and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith said at a news conference Friday.
About 128 are publicly owned Manitoba Housing apartments, which will be available to move into immediately, and the hope is to have more available in coming weeks, Smith said.
Another 32 will be available in the near future, the province said.
The rest of the rental units are non-profit homes and private rentals with government rent supplements.
"The need is going to determine the final number" of rental units made available, Smith said.
The units will be in Winnipeg, Brandon, Swan River and Portage la Prairie. The province is talking to municipal officials about their needs.
Homelessness is a complex issue that requires a multifaceted approach in order to provide long-lasting solutions, Smith said, and this announcement is part of the province's strategy to end chronic homelessness over the next eight years.
"Already, we have seen two of our relatives succumb to the elements," she said, referring to two people found dead in a tent at a Point Douglas park on Monday.
Smith is co-chairing a collaborative action circle that's planning the initiative. Carol McCorrister, who leads the Southern Chiefs' Organization's mobile crisis response team, is the other co-chair.
Hope to reduce need
The action circle also includes representatives from Indigenous organizations, the homeless-serving sector and women's organizations from across Manitoba, including End Homelessness Winnipeg, Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre and Mount Carmel Clinic.
"They see the gaps in services and they know what's needed. They've been informing our government," Smith said.
The new NDP government has been working with those organizations since they took office, she said, and the plan announced Friday stems from their recommendations.
"The idea is to have maybe not as big of a winter response next year, because we've had some success with this group."
In Phase 2 of the program, $2.9-million funding will be provided in the new year for housing programs specific to women and the LGBTQ community.
End Homelessness Winnipeg's 2022 street census found that over 30 per cent of the city's homeless people are women, about 10 per cent are LGBTQ people and 22 per cent are youth.
"I think what people don't know is the hidden homelessness that's out there. Many women are in unsafe situations," Jason Whitford, CEO of End Homelessness Winnipeg, said at the news conference.
The two people found dead in Point Douglas on Monday "underscore the level of urgency" of addressing homelessness in the province, he said.
Smith said investing in social housing is part of the solution.
"We're working on maintaining, fixing up and investing in the current social housing we have," Smith said.
Corrections:
- An earlier version of this story said the province's plan included 128 Manitoba Housing units, with 32 available immediately. In fact, there are 128 Manitoba Housing units available immediately and 32 will be available in the near future. December 15, 2023 11:50 PM