The clock is ticking for Cornerstone in downtown Kelowna.
The temporary emergency shelter is slated to close at the end of June, putting some who call the facility home back on the street.
That’s the last thing BC Housing wants to see, so talks are underway to find a replacement.
“We’re not looking to add shelter capacity to the community. What we’re doing is we’re looking for some capacity to replace what is currently existing at Cornerstone,” said Lance Kayfish, director of Community Safety for Kelowna.
The city says there are 186 homeless people living in the downtown core.
It says there are 80 people who rely on Cornerstone and another 90 who rely on the services of the Kelowna Gospel Mission, just a few blocks away.
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The city says that’s too many people in one area, suggesting Cornerstone should be replaced by several smaller shelters, outside the downtown area.
“We would like to find smaller shelters, maybe 30 to 40 — maybe even smaller than that,” said Kayfish. “But obviously there would be a number of locations if we were to reduce the size.”
The controversial question is: Where would these shelters go? But that’s not up to the city to decide. Instead, locations are based on zoning, with little input from council.
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“For certain zonings, whether it be private groups or not-for-profits, if the zoning is in place and they sign a lease with the landlord, in some situations they could probably commence operations,” said city councilor Brad Sieben.
Sieben says the city needs to be more involved in the decision-making process.
“And make sure that the city has inserted themselves inside the discussion,” Sieben said.
The John Howard Society, which runs the Cornerstone Shelter, tells Global News that it is currently talking with the City of Kelowna and BC Housing about additional emergency shelters.
It wouldn’t say where those shelters may be located.
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