The Coast is down to 14 homeless shelter beds.
Ten beds at the seasonal shelter in Gibsons closed on April 13 and six beds at Sechelt’s Upper Deck facility are not in service because of pandemic restrictions and renovations at the site.
Upper Deck expansion delays
There is no projected completion date for the 15 main floor spaces to be created by the Upper Deck expansion. Co-executive director of RainCity Housing, the operators of that facility, Catherine Hume told Coast Reporter that a municipal building inspection walk-through of the project was done in late April. Deficiencies were identified, but she was not aware of what those were.
BC Housing (BCH) purchased the Upper Deck site for $1.64 million and launched the renovation in June 2021. There were project delays related to a required archaeological investigation.
“We are currently working with RainCity to determine an appropriate timeline for the expanded shelter space to open. Further details, including any changes to operating funding, will be made public after the expansion opens,” BCH spokesperson Henry Glazebrook wrote in an April 29 email.
Glazebrook acknowledged construction scope and staffing as factors in the delay. “There are a number of steps that must be undertaken for any development that may lead to delays in completion, in this case including necessary expansion of construction scope to address unexpected building conditions and hiring of staff. These steps take time and are a vital component of ensuring due diligence is followed,” he wrote.
Hume said she had been hoping for a spring or early summer opening date, “but it was all dependent on a renovation process that was out of our control.
"Staffing has not been the driver of the delay to date," said Hume. "But if we are not able to adequately staff the space, we will not be able to open.”
Staff shortage
RainCity is currently recruiting for three casual shelter workers for its Sechelt operations. Starting wages range from $21.25 to $25.42 per hour.
“We have tried really, really hard to hire for permanent positions on the Coast and have continued to struggle, so as a back-up plan, to have enough staff available to cover the shelter 24/7, we are posting for casuals," said Hume,
"Because we don’t have a confirmed opening date, we haven’t started recruiting for full-timers and we are still in negotiations with BC Housing, our funder, about the staffing structure because of the way the build has happened.
She stated RainCity has experienced "significant recruitment issues on the Sunshine Coast" where they haven't struggled with recruitment on the Lower Mainland. "Other area non-profits and Vancouver Coastal Health are also struggling with hiring, due to a real lack of affordable housing on the Coast."
The positions are unionized, said Hume so there isn't flexibility with wages. But they are looking for "creative ways to mitigate recruitment difficulties.”
Steady growth of homelessness
Getting the new beds open can’t come fast enough for homelessness coordinator for the Town of Gibsons Silas White.
White raised concerns about the dearth of safe overnight spaces for those without a fixed address at the Emergency Housing Action Table meeting of April 25. He reported that Upper Deck is turning people away each evening and that in the week before it closed, the Gibsons facility hosted six to seven people each night.
While the numbers of beds and clients provides a glimpse into the extent of homelessness, White told Coast Reporter individual circumstances reveal more about the need. “I learned of a situation last week of a homeless individual in Sechelt who was coming out of hospital after a serious car accident, in a wheelchair. Because the accessible first floor of the (Upper Deck) shelter is not open yet, there is nowhere for him to go,” he said.
When asked for RainCity’s view on changes to homelessness in Sechelt over the past 10 years, Hume said “Like in many smaller communities in B.C. and nation-wide, there has been a steady growth in people experiencing homelessness on the Coast. I can’t give you any exact numbers but based on the conversations I have been involved with, it continues to be a growing issue.”
Upper Deck for adults only
BCH currently provides approximately $1.16 million in annual operating funding to the Upper Deck.
Upper Deck’s clients must be older than 18 years of age. Couples are welcomed as individuals into two separate spaces. The expansion will provide dedicated spaces for women and gender-diverse individuals. With additions being done on the building's ground floor, people with mobility restrictions will be able to better access services at that location. Hume said “We welcome people in who have active substance abuse issues. We believe it is incredibly important to do so, given the drug poisoning epidemic.”
