Advocate 'thrilled' that long-awaited Summerside emergency shelter has opened
P.E.I. government initially hoped to have the overnight shelter open by winter 2023
A woman who has long worked toward getting an overnight emergency shelter in Summerside says she hopes it will help keep some of the city's unhoused population off the streets and out of public parks.
The long-awaited shelter opened Thursday afternoon, nearly a year after the P.E.I. government had initially hoped to have it up and running.
"I, along with all of our volunteers, are absolutely thrilled to see the emergency shelter finally open its doors and begin accepting clients," said Elysha Whitlock, executive director of The Village Summerside, a non-profit that aims to help people facing homelessness.
"We wish we could have seen this a year prior to right now, but we are very thankful that it is finally open and operating. We could have used it much, much sooner."
Delays with the construction and getting permits for the site on Frank Mellish Drive delayed the opening of the facility.
On Thursday afternoon, the city issued an occupancy permit to allow the shelter to open its gates for the first time at 5 p.m.
It will be open seven days a week from 5 p.m. to 8 a.m., and clients can register to stay there for up to 30 days. It will also offer shower services two days a week to people who aren't staying there overnight but want to clean up.
Officials with the city don't know how full the shelter was Thursday night since the province is responsible for running it.
CBC News asked P.E.I.'s Department of Housing, Land and Communities for more information, but officials said they would not be providing comment at this time.
Some people facing homelessness told CBC News on Friday that they plan to continue sleeping outside until the weather gets colder.
'There will not be enough beds'
Regardless of how busy the shelter is, Whitlock said it will eventually need to expand.
She said she knows of 53 unhoused people in the city, so the "math just doesn't add up" for the 10-bed shelter.
"If all of the unhoused community members were to form a lineup outside of that building today at 4 p.m., when the gates open, there will not be enough beds for all of them," Whitlock said.
The shelter is located right beside a seniors home, Summerset Manor, and some residents in the area are still concerned about the service coming to their part of town.
"We're talking about at least 300 or 400 seniors… and it's not a good area, it really isn't," said Summerside resident Rena Gaudet.
City staff say the shelter will make it easier to clean up encampments around the city because police will now be able to direct people toward local services.
While the area inside the fence that surrounds the shelter will be the responsibility of the province, the city said there will be additional police patrols in the vicinity to ensure there are no issues.
With files from Tony Davis