Federal housing advocate urges caution as provinces turn to hotels for the unhoused
As provinces look to hotels to provide temporary shelter to people living in homeless encampments, Canada's housing advocate says governments must respect the needs and rights of the unhoused, who may not want to be moved.
Marie-Josee Houle made the remarks in Newfoundland and Labrador last month, where staff at a Comfort Hotel near the airport in St. John's will soon transform the building into a transitional housing facility under a lease with the province. The arrangement is similar to one struck by the Nova Scotia government that turned a DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in the Halifax region last year into a transitional housing complex.
Halifax and St. John's are among many cities across the country where unprecedented numbers of homeless people are living in tent encampments, a trend Houle says is a human rights crisis. And though hotels may provide temporary respite from the outdoors, they will not solve the problem, she said in St. John's.
"Living in a hotel is not a solution to homelessness," Houle said. "The big thing is did (governments) properly, meaningfully engage with people in encampments? Is this what they choose? That's really what it boils down to."
The Newfoundland and Labrador government announced its three-year, $20.7-million lease agreement for the Comfort Hotel last month, amid mounting public pressure to help people living in tents in a central St. John's park. Some encampment residents have said they felt safer in tents than in the province's shelter system, which includes homes owned by private landlords looking to make a profit.
The new facility, which does not yet have a name, will also offer mental health and addictions services,and include staff to help find residents a more permanent place to live. People are expected to begin moving in next month.
"We're still going to feed them," hotel owner Judy Sparkes-Giannou said in a recent interview. "We're still going to clean the rooms, we're still going to do all the things that we would typically do in a hotel environment, other than we're probably not picking them up at the airport."
Michael Kabalen, executive director of the Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia, worries governments offering transitional housing via hotels are pulling focus from permanent solutions. A hotel room can provide relief, especially if it comes with health care and community supports, but there must be permanent housing for people to go to when they leave, he said in a recent interview.
"If someone's in a hotel, and it is labelled as transitional, they're still going to be living in crisis while they live there. The only way to resolve that crisis is housing," Kabalen said. "These are all very expensive solutions. Housing is the least expensive solution for most of these folks."
His group helps run The Overlook, a supportive housing project in Dartmouth, N.S., which used to be a Travelodge hotel. They bought it with government funding, and renovated the hotel rooms to become self-contained apartments with bedrooms and kitchens. The complex, which Kabalen said opened last year, offers permanent apartments, not temporary shelters.
On Tuesday, Nova Scotia's Department of Community Services said it was in discussions about extending the lease on the former DoubleTree hotel in Dartmouth, which was turned into a transitional housing facility and on-site health clinic called The Bridge. The lease expires next month.
Eviction notices are shown on tents at a homeless encampment in Halifax on Wednesday, Feb.7, 2024. The Halifax Regional Municipality says it is “de-designating” five of the 11 sites it had previously established as approved locations for homeless encampments and is asking unhoused residents to leave. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Lyndsay ArmstrongMeanwhile, the Halifax Regional Municipality handed out eviction notices Wednesday to residents of five of its designated homeless encampments, saying there were "better options" available than outdoor tents.
In British Columbia, the Lookout Housing and Health Society runs a Canada's Best Value Inn in Langley, B.C., as a 46-bed supportive transitional housing facility, which began as an emergency residence during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Megan Kriger, a director with the group, said former hotels can work to house people in a crisis, but they often need renovations and they must be properly staffed to provide the necessary support.
"Hotels were not designed to be lived in and often those who require emergency or temporary housing are struggling with barriers which require even more durable living space requirements," she said in an email.
Houle said that whether or not provinces set up hotels as temporary housing for people in tents, governments must take their cues from the people they're trying to serve and look for permanent solutions.
"Homeless encampments are a physical manifestation of exactly how broken our housing and homelessness system is across the country," she said. "The immediate thing is for governments to acknowledge that there is a housing crisis that they need to address. And the solution is housing, adequate housing, which is different for every single person."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 7, 2024.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What is a 'halal mortgage'? Does it make housing more accessible?
The 2024 federal budget announced on April 16 included plans to introduce “halal mortgages” as a way to increase access to home ownership.
Here's where Canadians are living abroad: report
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
'We are declaring our readiness': No decision made yet as Poland declares it's ready to host nuclear weapons
Polish President Andrzej Duda says while no decision has been made around whether Poland will host nuclear weapons as part of an expansion of the NATO alliance’s nuclear sharing program, his country is willing and prepared to do so.
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized after return to New York from upstate prison
Harvey Weinstein’s lawyer said Saturday that the onetime movie mogul has been hospitalized for a battery of tests after his return to New York City following an appeals court ruling nullifying his 2020 rape conviction.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Central Alberta queer groups react to request from Red Deer-South to reinstate Jennifer Johnson to UCP caucus
A number of LGBQT+2s groups in Central Alberta are pushing back against a request from the Red Deer South UCP constituency to reinstate MLA Jennifer Johnson into the UCP caucus.
Mookie Betts leads Dodgers past Blue Jays 4-2; Toronto drops fifth consecutive game
Mookie Betts went 3 for 5, including a triple and an RBI single, as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Saturday.
Local Spotlight
DonAir force takes over at Oilers playoff games
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan skips haircuts for 10 years waiting for Stanley Cup win
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”