The City of Vancouver says it has come up with funding to keep two programs that help keep the Downtown Eastside’s streets free of human waste — at least until the end of the year.
Earlier this month, Global News reported that Project Hope, a program that picks up trash and pressure washes Hastings Street, and operations at several public toilets were both at risk of ending following the expiry of grant funding.
The programs were funded through a one-time grant from the province and the Union of BC Municipalities that expired in June.
The potential loss of the toilets prompted advocates to launch a social media campaign urging people to send photos of excrement on the street to the city’s mayor.
The Overdose Prevention Society, which operates the toilets at Pigeon Park and 144 E Hastings Street, estimates they see tens of thousands of users per year, and are critical to keeping the streets clean.
The facilities were installed as a temporary measure during the COVID-19 pandemic and are expensive to operate because they require on-site attendants for security and in case someone overdoses inside.
“It’s just a basic public service so that people aren’t having to go to the washroom in the streets like they were a few years ago,” OPS executive director Sarah Blyth told Global News in a July 9 interview.
On Wednesday, the city said it had “identified internal budgetary savings” that would allow it to continue public washroom attendant programs at Pigeon Park and at the city’s Oppenheimer Park Field House through the end of 2024.
The Overdose Prevention Society has found a community partner to help keep washrooms at 144 E Hastings open as well, it added.
However, the city said it could not find funding to keep a public toilet outside the Astoria Hotel running.
“City staff are actively exploring other dignified and durable washroom models that are better designed to meet the safety and accessibility needs of individuals experiencing homelessness and can be operated more affordably,” the city said in a media release.
RainCity will continue to operate overdose prevention services at the site, and the city said the washroom trailer could potentially be transferred to the group if it can find funding to operate it.
The city said it had also found money to keep Project Hope afloat through the end of the year.
The initiative, operated by Mission Possible, employs Downtown Eastside residents and has removed 35,400 bags of trash and nearly 20,000 instances of feces since 2023.
The city said it was working to find long-term funding options for the program.
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