Measures to address homelessness issues ongoing in Williams Lake

Courtesy of the City of Williams Lake:

The City of Williams Lake is continuing to take steps to address the complex issue of homelessness in the community.

At its Tuesday, May 2 Regular Council Meeting and at the recommendation of City staff, Council endorsed bylaw staff to mitigate the adverse impacts of homeless encampments in the community for the short-term by identifying temporary, overnight outdoor shelter locations. Council’s future plans also include looking at piloted models that other municipalities such as Kelowna, Kamloops, Victoria and Nanaimo have used to address homelessness.

Legally, the City cannot prohibit all its parks and public spaces from being used for overnight sheltering; however, it can identify which parks or public spaces the prohibition against overnight sheltering will not be applied to.

Currently, the demand for indoor shelter space has exceeded the number of available spaces and labour resources in the community, which has resulted in an estimated 50 people sheltering outdoors or requiring temporary housing.

Through consultation with the Williams Lake RCMP and various related organizations, the optimal temporary location was determined to be at the south end of Boitanio Park away from the disc golf course, bike park and Boitanio Day Camp. This decision was made based on proximity for accessibility, security and access to medical and health services.

The location will allow access to waste receptacles, sharps containers, and public washrooms and will allow for overnight shelter from 10 pm to 7 am. Each morning, bylaw staff and RCMP will visit the area to ensure tents are removed and the area is clear. City public works staff will remove any remaining debris each day.

“The City, BC Housing, Canadian Mental Health Association – Cariboo Chilcotin Branch and other partners are continuing to work together to increase the number of indoor sheltering spaces available in Williams Lake,” said City of Williams Lake Chief Administrative Officer Gary Muraca. “We are taking immediate action to work with senior levels of government to eliminate the need for anyone to shelter outside. In the meantime, this is the best temporary solution for those people living in our community who do not have homes for a variety of reasons.”

While staff are aware of the City’s role as a key stakeholder with regard to homelessness, it is important to recognize providing housing and healthcare services is not the responsibility of local governments and that local governments do not have the authority or resources to take the lead on these matters.

The City is aware homelessness is an evolving, dynamic crisis in our community and there is no simple solution.

“Williams Lake is not alone in attempting to deal with this important and complex issue,” Muraca said. “Ultimately, the plan is to continue to lobby and to apply pressure on senior levels of government to provide long-term solutions to mental health, addiction and homelessness in the community.”

Local programs deliver more services to tackle homelessness across BC

Courtesy of the Government of BC:

Editor's Note -- Quesnel will receive $317,651 from this program while Williams Lake will receive $116,000

Vulnerable people in 48 communities throughout British Columbia will benefit from increased local services in response to homelessness made worse by the pandemic.

“Local governments have been on the front lines of the pandemic, supporting communities and continuing to provide critical services when people need them most,” said the Hon. Josie Osborne, BC's Minister of Municipal Affairs. “These grants will provide local governments with a much-needed boost to continue vital services that were strained because of the pandemic. This is another StrongerBC program focused on making life better for people and ensuring communities emerge from the pandemic even stronger than before.”

The Strengthening Communities’ Services Program gives local governments and modern Treaty Nations additional capacity to address the effects of homelessness and keep their communities safe and healthy as they recover from the pandemic. The program is investing more than $76 million in projects, such as outreach and mental health supports, and expanding or creating new temporary shelters for people experiencing homelessness.

The City of Surrey’s Pandemic Response Package is one of the projects being funded to bring immediate relief to people. It includes programs such as:

• Safe Sleep, which creates a safe space for people without shelter to use during the day; and
• Nourish Surrey, which offers people a comfortable place to rest during the day, with nutritious meals and health and social services.

“Through our pandemic response package, we will deliver six programs that together will address the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and improve health and safety outcomes for unsheltered and vulnerable citizens,” said Doug McCallum - Mayor, City of Surrey. “The programs will deliver additional temporary shelter accommodation, enhanced meal services, expand health services and provide targeted outreach supports for vulnerable unsheltered people hit hardest by the pandemic.”

The Strengthening Communities Services Program is open to all municipalities, regional districts and modern Treaty Nations in B.C. It is administered by the Union of British Columbia Municipalities on behalf of the Province.

“B.C. local governments have been calling for additional funding to improve services for residents facing mental-health challenges or homelessness,” said Brian Frenkel - President, Union of B.C. Municipalities. “The Strengthening Communities program is highly adaptable to the specific needs of communities and is fostering creativity and innovation in how services are delivered. I appreciate the provincial funding for this program and look forward to seeing these new projects move into implementation.”

The program is part of the Safe Restart Agreement, which is funded equally by the Province and the Government of Canada.

Quick Facts:

• The Government of Canada and the Province are providing $540 million in shared funding to local governments under the Safe Restart Agreement to help communities manage the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• In addition to the $100-million Strengthening Communities’ Services Program, other funding includes:
  • $425 million in direct grants for local government operations to address facility reopening and operating costs, emergency response costs, lost revenue and other COVID-19-related effects; and
  • $15 million for the Local Government Development Approvals Program to increase the efficiency of local development approval processes.

Learn More:

StrongerBC: https://strongerbc.gov.bc.ca/

B.C.’s economic recovery plan:
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/covid-19-provincial-support/bc-restart-plan

Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan:
https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/economic-response-plan.html

Government of Canada takes action on COVID-19:
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/canadas-reponse/government-canada-takes-action-covid-19.html

A list of successful applicants can be viewed here