A temporary winter shelter that was announced last month will open in about a couple weeks in Dartmouth.
Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) and the Nova Scotia government say the temporary shelter will be located at 197-199 Windmill Road — the site of the former St. Paul Church.
It’s slated to open in mid-November.
The shelter will initially offer 50 beds for people aged 16 and older of all genders — and can accommodate pets. More beds can be added, if there is a need and in cases of extreme weather events.
The shelter will operate nightly until spring, with the option to extend.
An evening meal and continental breakfast will be provided.
“This is a great opportunity for support. It’s a great opportunity to partner with HRM and with service providers,” said Trevor Boudreau, Minister of Community Services, on Friday.
“We sense the urgency … and we’re going to continue to look at opportunities and we have continued to.”
The province will fund the building’s $825,000 lease, operating costs and wraparound services, which will be provided by 902 Man Up — a non-profit volunteer organization,
The municipality, meanwhile, will provide property maintenance, including inspections and any work required to bring the site to compliance.
Mayor Mike Savage recently told Global News he hopes people living in tents at Grand Parade or Victoria Park will be able to stay at the shelter when it opens.
On Friday, Savage said while the new shelter was a positive step, “the simple fact is, it’s not enough.”
“Are people going to move from Halifax to the north end of Dartmouth? I don’t know,” said Savage.
“We just need more, we need more resources.”
The shelter is part of a wider announcement made last month, that includes additional overnight shelters in Amherst and Bridgewater, as well as the purchase of 200 pallet shelters to create shelter villages. Those shelters will potentially be placed on provincial, municipal and service provider-owned land.
Boudreau told the legislature this week that the pallet shelters will arrive in December, due to a nine-week turnaround.
They will offer single-occupancy rooms, with bathroom and laundry units onsite. A hundred of the units will be in HRM, while the others will be dispersed across the province.
— with a file from Global News’ Callum Smith and Vanessa Wright