Montreal adding 700 additional homeless shelters this winter

The City of Montreal and the CIUSSS of Center-Sud-de-l’Île-de-Montréais are adding an additional 700 winter shelters and warming centres for the homeless as winter temperatures begin to set it.

A total of 1,650 emergency winter shelters will open for the homeless during the winter of 2020-2021.

Hundreds of new beds will be set up across city shelters as of Sunday (November 1), as demand soars across the island, states the City of Montreal.

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Montreal’s initiative includes close to 400 new sleeping quarters at the Place Dupuis Hotel, including sectioned off rooms for women, men, couples, and young people. Some resources will allow pets to also be accommodated.

“These measures are being offered to meet the needs of people experiencing homelessness so that everyone can find a warm place to spend the day and night during the winter,” says the city. Measures have been “considerably improved” in order to meet increasingly urgent needs during the pandemic period.

Deux fois plus de ressources que l’hiver dernier sont prévues : 700 places de plus dans 9 haltes-chaleur et en hébergement d’urgence, dont un hôtel du centre-ville. Un centre de jour ouvrira au Grand Quai grâce au @PortMTL et 6 navettes sillonneront le territoire. (2/4) #polmtl

— Valérie Plante (@Val_Plante) October 29, 2020

Seven transportation shuttle services will travel the streets to accompany people experiencing homelessness, offering resources and rides back to sheltered areas across the city.

For the upcoming winter, here are several shelters (some with beds) across the Montreal region:

• Halte-chauffeur du centre ville (under the guidance of the Old Brewery Mission)
• The Hochelaga-Maisonneuve heat stop
• Chez Doris
• The Côte-des-Neiges heat stop (managed by Prévention NDG)
• The Montreal-Nord warming centre
• The Ahuntsic and Parc-Extension heat stops (supported by the RAP jeunesse and PACT de Rue)
• The South West heat centre (carried out by Maison Benoit Labre)
• The Plateau Mont-Royal heat stop (organized by Open Door)
• The West Island heat stop (managed by the Ricochet organization)

Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante says the 1,650 total accommodations is still below the expected number of people experiencing homelessness in Montreal and she says the initiative is part of Montreal’s “bigger plan” to ensure everyone has a roof over their head.