Montreal homeless centres lacking for space during cold snap

Despite being one of the biggest shelters in Montreal’s eastern region, every single bed at Refuge Hochelaga is taken, as a cold snap sweeps across the city.

It’s one of three centres managed by CAP St-Barnabé.

Collectively, they offer warm spaces for more than 270 homeless people, but site coordinator Jennifer Fakhouri says it’s not enough.

At least 40 people are being turned away at the doors every night.

“This just goes to show, that if we’re full, then that means all the other centres are most probably full,” Fakhouri adds.

On Dec. 15, a 55-year-old homeless man died in a park in the borough, possibly of hypothermia according to authorities.

It’s a devastating problem that Fakhouri expects to get worse.

“This could be just the unfortunate beginning of what we could be seeing more, possibly more deaths on the streets,” she said.

At this centre alone, there are 119 beds and 25 extra chairs where people wait weeks for a cubicle to open up.

“Comfort is obviously definitely a necessity, but we’d rather have more people in the shelters than outside.”

At least three new drop-in centres opened across the city last week.

More and more, shelters are turning to this solution.

At the Lucien Saulnier building, 30 chairs have been set up as a last minute measure.

A city spokesperson confirmed today 27 people spent the night Monday.

Nearly 75 people were at the downtown YMCA, where capacity has been expanded to meet demand.

It’ll be open until the morning of Dec. 27.

A centre at UQAM also has some 50 spaces available.

Another spokesperson told CTV, Montreal is still waiting on nearly $25 million sent to the province by the federal government to help fight homelessness.

Another $25 million will be distributed to other regions, but red tape has slowed the process.