Downtown community cautiously welcomes turning portion of Portage Place into 24/7 space

A homelessness advocate welcomes the idea of turning a section of Portage Place Shopping Centre into a public hub open all hours — as long as it's geared to the vulnerable population it's intended to serve.

Executive director Rick Lees of Main Street Project is pleased to hear another community space could be coming to downtown Winnipeg.

"Space is great, but you've also got to marry that with supports and services for people who are dealing with mental health and addiction," he said.

A week before the deadline for Starlight Investments to finalize a deal to buy the mall, the Toronto-based company has pledged to include up to 10,000 square feet of space for community members to access any time of day or night.

In a news release on Thursday, Starlight said the move to create a community hub — to be called "P3Commons" — comes "following a meeting with key community stakeholders and pending final due diligence."

Although his organization was not part of that talk, Lees hopes the developers will consider what existing groups have already said. For example, a report submitted by End Homelessness Winnipeg to the city's community services department lists recommendations for expanding overnight safe spaces in Winnipeg.

Thoughts from the core

Arthur Szymkow has lived in the central area since 1984. He has seen what it's like to live with few options on a limited budget.

"I don't think that just because it's a commercial enterprise that they should enforce rules that if you don't buy anything, you can't stay," he said, adding that it can be difficult for people on low incomes to find safe and affordable things to do, especially without access to transportation.

The former bus shelter in front of the mall on Portage Avenue was known as a hot spot for violent crime and drug dealing before it was torn down.

A few blocks away, places like the Bell MTS Centre and True North Square have popped up as alternate downtown destinations, but Szymkow said up until now, there hasn't been enough incentive. "The best made plans of mice and men and the city founders haven't changed things much in the downtown area, especially for people in the lower socioeconomic strata," he said.

"So I think it's a good idea here, as long as they can keep the problems to a minimum."

Alliance Bahati, who works at the mall, said she feels secure downtown as it is, but a community hub would add to her confidence.

"I think it's going to be safer," Bahati said.

Reimagining Portage Place

Lees pictures a gathering place with public washrooms and supports and services at hand, as well as an ability to monitor those spaces.

He pointed to a recent pilot project that brought pop-up public toilets to the city's centre. The washrooms were used over 3,000 times in six weeks, he said. "In order to maintain the space safely, we had to have people there servicing that facility, so I think our hope is that they'll do the same with this space," Lees said.

That could include community health clinics, social services and ways to access off-site support centres.

Lees warned public facilities, including the stalls at Main Street's downtown warming centre, bear the unintended consequences of becoming consumption sites. For that reason, sharps containers for returning used needles and a watchful eye are crucial to protecting people who use the space and its neighbours.

"When it's winter and it's 30 below, and people now have a place to go, it doesn't change the dynamic of the fact that addiction is continues to be there," Lees said.

He said he's interested in reviewing the developer's proposal, which he hopes includes safety and de-escalation plans in cases of emergency that are centred around trauma-informed care and non-violent crisis intervention.

"I think if we see this as designing space for the people that are using it, then it's great. If you're designing space to warehouse people, not so good."

But from what he's read and heard, Lees believes the best intentions are being put forward by the private business.

"What we have to be careful of is that people aren't promising things to get something else," Lees said.

"If you want to build this facility, then you have to be serious about the clientele that's going to use it and invest in it. You shouldn't use it as a leverage to do all the other stuff that you want to do."