Advocates call on Toronto to keep surge warming centres open as cold snap continues

Advocates who spent part of Wednesday offering winter survival gear to unhoused people in encampments are urging the city to keep open two surge capacity warming centres as the cold snap continues in Toronto.

The city opened the two surge warming centres on Tuesday evening to provide extra capacity because of the cold, but closed them on Wednesday after the temperature rose above –15 C. 

As part of its winter services plan for people experiencing homelessness, the city opens its five warming centres when the temperature reaches –5 C or when Environment Canada issues a winter weather event warning. It opens its two surge warming centres when the temperature reaches –15 C. 

Lorraine Lam, a member of advocacy group Shelter and Housing Justice Network, said she was shocked to learn that the city closed the surge centres on Wednesday.

"We know that, whether it's –15 or –13 C, it is still cold, and so, the fact that they've closed the surge sites, to me, is completely egregious. Also, when they say that they are going to refer people elsewhere, we know that the shelter is full, we know that warming centres are basically at capacity, so where are they referring people to?" Lam said.

"It is still freezing out here and the risk of cold injury and death is very real."

Lam said the real solution to homelessness is "deeply affordable" non-profit housing, but in the interim, the city needs to provide year-round 24-hour low-barrier respite spaces for unhoused people, no matter what the weather is.

"It is dangerous to be outside in the elements without anywhere to go," Lam said. "What we really do need are options for people to go inside. Opening and closing at such arbitrary numbers, it's not realistic."

Surge sites open when conditions 'particularly desperate': city

The city, for its part, said it opened the two surge warming centres at 5 p.m. on Tuesday night at Cecil Community Centre, 58 Cecil St., and Jimmie Simpson Recreation Centre, 870 Queen St. E. 

City spokesperson Elise von Scheel said there are a lot of people living outside in Toronto and the winter services plan is there to augment the shelter system when conditions are "particularly desperate."

"Those surge sites become available when the weather hits –15," she said.

While the centres are no longer available with temperatures now back above –15 C, the city continues to provide space at five other warming centres for people in need, von Scheel said.

"Warming centres are walk-ins, so people are welcome to come in and if there's no space at that particular location that they've come to, we help facilitate transportation to another area that has space."

In a warming centre notification on Wednesday morning, the city said: "Staff are working to refer individuals who remain onsite to alternate spaces in the shelter system."

As of Wednesday, the following warming centres remain open:

• 136 Spadina Rd. (south of Dupont Street).
• 81 Elizabeth St. (behind city hall, west of Bay St., south of Dundas Street W.).
• 12 Holmes Ave. (off of Yonge St., south of Finch Avenue E.).
• 885 Scarborough Golf Club Rd. (east of Markham Rd., south of Ellesmere Road).
• Metro Hall, 55 John St. (east of John St., north of Wellington Street W.).

On its website, the city says: "Warming Centres give those who are vulnerable and may be experiencing homelessness a place to rest and access meals, washroom facilities and referrals to emergency shelter.

"Individuals do not need to contact Central Intake to access a Warming Centre."

191 turned away from shelters nightly in November

According to city data, an average of 191 people nightly were turned away from the shelter system in November.

The city says the number of people "actively homeless" in Toronto in the last three months was 10,460.

It accommodated 11,672 people in its shelters on Tuesday night.

Environment Canada says the high Thursday will be –3 C, but the wind chill will make it feel like –19 in the morning and –9 in the afternoon. Friday's high is expected to be –2 C with a low of –4 C at night.