A group of housing advocates in Victoria is asking local churches to volunteer their parking lots for a new shelter option that could keep someone in need warm during the winter months.
Krista Loughton, a documentary filmmaker, has helped fundraise more than $5,000 to build a Conestoga Hut in the city — a trial to prove the insulated wagon-style structures are a functional short-term option for the unhoused.
“We’re calling on all churches in the Greater Victoria area to put one hut on their parking lot, and for right now, we just need one church to do that,” she told Global News on Tuesday.
“We can get our prototype done, we can show that it works and hopefully other churches would step up to repeat the model.”
Loughton co-founded the Community Alliance for Sheltering Alternatives with friends Matt Dell and Jeremy Caradonna after reviewing more than 115 hours of footage she shot last year of homeless encampments in Victoria.
They noted that Conestoga Huts have been used successfully in other jurisdictions, like the Oregon city of Eugene, and decided to build one in the city.
The modular micro-shelters can be built quickly by a handful of volunteers and one unit costs between $2,500 and $4,000, said Loughton.
“We do have an extreme weather response but it’s not enough,” she explained. “Enough is enough, it’s time for the community to step up.”
The Community Alliance for Sheltering Alternatives has already selected a candidate for the first hut in Victoria, but has yet to find a church parking lot.
Any other responsibilities the church would take on as a partner would be discussed “one-on-one,” Loughton added, but the organization plans to have other volunteers support the hut’s resident with needs such as groceries and friendship.
She said there were an estimated 50 or more people sleeping outside in Victoria on Monday night in temperatures below freezing.
Alex Bourque was one of them and told Global News he has woken up “covered in snow banks” some nights. A shelter like a Conestoga Hut would “change everything,” he said, and allow him to focus on getting back to work.
“It’s a great idea if it gets people indoors. It’s all I wanted for Christmas was to get inside and start living my life again.”
According to the City of Victoria, there are about 1,500 people experiencing homelessness in the capital region.
Last year, the municipality created an Emergency Social Services Grant of more than $100,000 to help ensure those living outside can access showers, outreach services, food and clothing.
The city also works with BC Housing, Island Health, the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness, the Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness and other agencies to help residents in need find access to shelter.
In March, Victoria and B.C. government inked an agreement that commits to ending homeless encampments in local parks and to find indoor living spaces for those affected.
The provincial government says there are more than 11,000 subsidized housing units, rent supplements and emergency shelter spaces for people experiencing homelessness, or at risk of homelessness in B.C.
The city did not respond to a request for comment on this story.
Provincial Housing Minister David Eby sent a statement on Wednesday afternoon and said the province and BC Housing “appreciate the many innovative ideas” community groups contribute to the discussion on homelessness.
“We recognize that these types of community-driven initiatives can play an important role in providing access to housing and we support them where we can, with operational funding,” Eby wrote.
“For example, we’ve provided operational funding for the Caledonia Tiny Home Village in Victoria, a fantastic partnership with the City of Victoria and Aryze Developments. We also provided operational funding and, more recently, land, for tenting cabins in the Cowichan Valley, operated by Cowichan Housing Association.”
This winter, the B.C. government is providing more than 1,900 temporary shelter spaces and around 400 emergency weather response shelter spaces to people experiencing homelessness, he added.