Peterborough’s mayor is placing a portable water station in her city hall parking space to help those displaced by the weekend closure of a homeless shelter.
On June 30, the Warming Room closed after failing to renew its lease at the Murray Street Baptist Church. The church said it was undergoing must-needed renovations including the space used by the shelter. The closure forced out nearly 30 people. Some of them have since began tenting on municipal property, including in nearby Victoria Park.
On Wednesday afternoon, Mayor Diane Therrien said outreach workers have been “actively reaching out” to make connections between those tenting and available housing or shelter accommodations. She said as of
“This is a process that takes time,” she stated in a tweet.
In interim, Therrien says she has arranged for a portable washroom and water station to be available for the remainder of the week, as the area will endure high temperatures and humidity in the 30 C range.
The water station will be located in her parking space in the city hall parking lot off of Water Street and be there until 8 p.m. each night. The portable washroom will be set up up Tuesday evening across from the parking lot at Victoria Park.
“I feel strongly that this is the least we could do to help those most vulnerable in our community during this difficult period of transition, particularly with the heat and humidity expected for the rest of the week,” stated Therrien.
WATCH: Warming Room homeless shelter in Peterborough forced to close