Out-of-the-cold shelter opens in Bathurst
Temporary facility has 12 beds and will be open daily from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m.
After a brief delay, Bathurst's out-of-the-cold shelter is up and running.
The temporary facility at the Evangel Pentecostal Church on Basin Street opened its doors on Friday evening.
The shelter features 12 beds and will be open daily for clients aged 16 and older from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. until April 30. The shelter will also open during the day when the temperature isn't forecast to rise above –10 C with wind chill.
Mandy Harvey, executive director of the Bathurst Youth Centre, which runs the shelter with funding from the Department of Social Development, said the shelter had been hoping to open on Dec. 1 but it was delayed by insurance and fire marshal concerns.
Still, clients are happy to see the facility open, Harvey said, because "it was just a relaxed environment — everybody was really happy to be there."
Getting the numbers right
Harvey said there's some confusion around the state of homelessness in the city, citing recent reports that there were 117 people who were unhoused.
But that's the number of residents receiving social assistance who did not have a fixed address, she said, estimating the number of people sleeping rough at around 60.
Harvey also cited rumours that up to 300 people were living in encampments, which she said was untrue.
"There definitely were people staying in encampments, but the numbers were not anywhere near there. They were much lower than that," she said.
Shelter seeking permanent location
Harvey said the Evangel Pentecostal Church has been "amazing" to work with and using the space has "been working out wonderfully."
The shelter provides showers, laundry services and outreach services for clients.
But they are also searching for a permanent location for the shelter, she said.
"There is a location in Bathurst that we do have our eyes on, and that we're hoping might come through within the next year."
With files from Information Morning Moncton