Homeless shelters in Montreal are urging the Quebec government to reach an agreement with Ottawa to help people living in encampments in the city.
The federal government has offered as much as $50 million to help address the homelessness crisis, but the province has been slow to accept the deal.
The funding delay, first reported Friday by Radio-Canada, needs to be settled as soon as possible, said Sam Watts, CEO of the Welcome Hall Mission.
“We’re obviously in a hurry. We’re trying to say, ‘Come on, let’s make this happen,'” Watts said in an interview.
The federal money, he said, “was intended to be able to help cities address some of the urgent problems that we all see every day, and there is very little reason to delay.”
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is also expected to address the delay later today, after touring new housing at Chez Doris, a Montreal women’s shelter.
Millions on the line
In September, the federal government said it made available $250 million to the provinces to help “urgently find shelter for those experiencing homelessness or living in encampments.”
That money comes with conditions, however.
Housing Minister Sean Fraser’s office told Radio-Canada it is waiting on Quebec to provide a matching contribution to the federal investment, and provide plans for how the money will be used.
“We look forward to being able to allocate this funding in Quebec communities to help prevent and reduce out-of-shelter homelessness in Quebec,” spokesperson Sofia Ouslis said in a statement.
Marie Barrette, a spokesperson for Quebec Social Services Minister Lionel Carmant, said negotiations are “going very well” and the province is hoping to reach a deal soon.
Barrette said the government expects to receive its “fair share.”
“As for Quebec’s financial participation, discussions are underway considering all the money that the government invests in homelessness,” she said.
Other provinces, including Ontario and Saskatchewan, have also been slow to accept the federal funding.
Months ago, the space in the Old Brewery Mission was an open dormitory packed with bunk beds. Now it’s split up into small private rooms offering clients more privacy and dignity — while only losing six of the shelter’s 191 beds.
Marie-Pier Therrien, communications director of Montreal’s Old Brewery Mission, said the money would help organizations develop new ways to help people in encampments around the city, which have become increasingly common since the pandemic.
“This is an area where we need to do more, and we need to act faster,” Therrien said in an interview.
“Most of the emergency services and shelters are full 12 months a year. What’s worrying us the most is that the living conditions of people in encampments become way more dangerous and risky as winter comes.”
