On Wednesday, the city of Toronto opened four of five 24-hour cold weather drop-in centres that will operate through the winter.
The Shelter, Support and Housing department says the facilities will be open on a continuous basis until mid-April.
Manager of Partnership Development and Support Pat Anderson told AM640 that the city is expanding the number of “respite sites” to five locations compared to the three that operated during the winter of 2016-17.
READ MORE: New data reports 27 homeless deaths in Toronto so far in 2017
“We’ve added an additional 90 sleeping spaces for a total of 250,” said Anderson. “These are places people can go to get a warm meal, a place to sleep or referrals to shelters or other community services.”
The four locations are:
- Yonge and Bloor at 21 Park Rd.
- Downtown east at 323 Dundas St. E. (east of Dundas and Sherbourne)
- Downtown west at 25 Augusta Ave. (northwest of Queen and Spadina)
- Scarborough at 705 Progress Ave. (northeast of Ellesmere and McCowan)
Another site in Parkdale on Lansdowne north of Queen will open just before the end of November.
Anderson also said that outreach assistance is also available if it appears someone may need a hand.
“If you see someone who may need assistance you can call 311 for help unless it’s an emergency and they are in obvious distress, then you should call 911.”
In addition to the new sites, the city created ‘Homeless Help,’ a listing of emergency services for the homeless which can be found online at the city’s website but also in the form of an downloadable app.
Comments