SAINT JOHN – There are 2,834 people in Saint John living on less than $600 a month, a number the Saint John Human Development Council wants to completely resolve rather than manage.
The council released the city’s latest homelessness report card and it shows stark figures for 2014 along with the need for more affordable housing.
The report focuses on moving toward putting an end to homelessness, rather than managing it — a push that would include moving people out of shelters and into affordable housing.
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“There’s the moral argument that it’s the right thing to do,” said report author Jenny O’Connell. “We also know that it’s the fiscally responsible thing to do. It’s more cost effective to house people than it is to let them remain homeless.”
There was a year-over-year decrease in the number of people who used an emergency shelter, from 338 in 2013 to 198 in 2014.
However, more than 1,000 people are on a waiting list for subsidized housing in the Saint John region, a number that remains unchanged since 2013.
The Salvation Army’s Centre of Hope in Saint John, an emergency men’s shelter that had been open since 1982, closed in 2014.
But the Safe Harbour Transitional Youth Services facility opened in March, and helps at-risk youth who need short-term and long-term stays.
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The facility is in direct response to what is described as a crisis in youth homelessness in southern New Brunswick.
Officials say there are as many as 200 homeless youth in the region.
Saint John will be participating in the 20,000 Homes campaign, which was launched by the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness in July.
– With files from Andrew Cromwell, Global News
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