Parents question homeless shelter next to daycare after body discovered

Some parents are questioning whether a Montreal homeless shelter should be directly next to the daycare after the body of a 32-year-old man was found in the playground last week.

The daycare is located in the same church as the St. Michael’s Mission, which serves the homeless community.

Daycare staff say before they let the kids out to play, they sweep the yard for drug paraphernalia and beer bottles.

Last week, however, they found the body of a homeless person here.

"We didn’t exactly know what to think," said Ralph Nakhle, the father of a boy in the daycare.

After the initial trauma, many parents including Nakhle have been questioning the logic of having a daycare and homeless shelter so close together.

"The homeless people need to be looked after, as well as our kids need to be taken care of and fostered into the society, but does that really need to happen side by side?" he said.

Mayor Valerie Plante said the city is working with public health to find solutions, but said it’s complicated.

"Of course, we want the homeless community not to stay outside and freeze to death. That’s happened in the past, but we also want to support families staying downtown," she said.

When pressed on whether it makes sense that daycares and homeless shelters share spaces, she deferred to the director of an organization that provides services to the homeless community.

"People without a home are not criminals, so let’s not jump to the conclusion that if organizations are sharing space, children are necessarily at risk," said Fiona Crossley of Accueil Bonneau.

Daycare parents say they're sympathetic to the homeless population, but they still have concerns.

"The first or second day that I was dropping off [my son], I saw a guy with no underwear, no pants right behind the garbage can with a needle," said Nakhle.

The daycare's administrator said the staff wants better security in the area.