Montreal officials are looking to relocate some of the day services at a homeless shelter west of downtown that also serves as a supervised injection centre.
Sud-Ouest borough Mayor Benoit Dorais confirmed Tuesday that the city made the ask to the province, saying “collectively with the government we will have to find a safe and proper location.”
“The situation ended up being worse than we expected,” said Dorais, who is also the Montreal executive committee member responsible for housing.
Maison Benoît Labre, located in the city’s St-Henri neighbourhood, serves vulnerable clients who are either unhoused or dealing with addiction issues. It houses a supervised consumption site and about 30 transitional housing units. The centre also has food and employability programs for clients.
The city says both the housing united and supervised consumption site will stay at the current location, with Dorais saying the problem doesn’t lie with the “six to eight people” who use the supervised injection services on a daily basis.
Dorais says the issue is that the number of people who use the day services — such as meals, showers and a place to take a break from the weather elements — at Maison Benoît Labre is too high. The centre offers up to 1,000 meals on a daily basis, according to Dorais.
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Dorais says it is “too big a concentration right now of homeless people” and “far more than expected.”
“That’s the principal problem,” Dorais said.
The city wants to relocate those operations elsewhere. Dorais says “social cohabitation is really difficult” and there have been safety issues.
The opening of Maison Benoît Labre in the area has been a sore spot for some residents, with backlash continuing to rise after it officially opened its doors in April. Its close proximity to an elementary school has drawn sharp criticism.
St-Henri resident Ron Jamieson says there have been issues since the site opened in the spring and police are often present.
“We are a strong support group and a lot of our neighbours for the poor people who have kids in the school who are directly adjacent to it,” he said.
‘Key player’ in the community
As the city’s ask made headlines this week, Maison Benoît Labre issued a statement saying it is a “key player in the community” and has been helping Montreal’s “most vulnerable for 75 years.”
The non-profit organization also says it has implemented several measures in recent months to “limit the effects on the neighbourhood.” It works closely with the social services ministry, Montreal police and regional health authorities.
“We continue to ask for the full cooperation of all our partners, including the City of Montreal, to continue providing essential and life-saving services,” Maison Benoît Labre said in a statement on its Facebook page.
In a statement, Quebec’s social services ministry said it is “in favour of the relocation of MBL day services and note that cohabitation issues remain despite all the efforts that have been made.”
While the ministry plans to work with stakeholders to help move those operations, it wants the city to “offer us several alternative sites to avoid a concentration of services.”
There will be a public consultation to find a new location to house the day services, according to the city.
“We will find a solution,” Dorais said.
— with files from Global’s Brayden Jagger Haines and Dan Spector and The Canadian Press
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