Over the past three weeks, the municipality of Saanich has been under fire for its lack of action in providing shelter spaces for the region’s unhoused population as winter approaches.
It started earlier this month when Victoria Coun. Jeremy Caradonna expressed frustration that the city is taking most of the burden as they are home to about 80 per cent of the shelter spaces in Greater Victoria. He contends Saanich – the Island’s most populated municipality – has less shelter space than Sooke and Salt Spring Island.
The issue was thrust back into the spotlight in the wake of the Quadra fire on Nov. 20, when the district established an emergency reception centre at the Saanich Commonwealth Place, where 15 people were provided shelter, food and assistance. Many expressed frustration, questioning why Saanich could mobilize an immediate emergency response but is unable to provide warming centres for the region’s homeless.
“I'm appreciative of Saanich Fire Department... but we've been asking for [them to establish] warming centres for the unhoused during extreme weather events and they haven't done it,” said Victoria Coun. Krista Loughton in an interview with Saanich News. “That was frustrating to see."
After being called to action by the capital city and various community actors, Saanich council addressed the issue and explored ways to increase their involvement at a Nov. 25 committee of the whole meeting.
The next steps
Saanich Mayor Dean Murdock opened the discussion by asking Brock Henson, Saanich’s deputy fire chief, to outline the municipality’s current efforts to address the issue of homelessness and its emergency winter weather response.
The Victoria Native Friendship Centre, a full-time shelter, provides the district’s only 25 beds but can expand to 33 in urgent situations, Henson noted. This is part of the 415 shelter beds funded by BC Housing in the Capital Region, he added.
Henson explained that the extreme weather response (EWR) protocol is divided into two categories: shelter beds and warming centres. Extreme weather shelter beds are typically provided by organizations or churches that usually specialize in these services. In Victoria, for example, the Salvation Army offers 30 mats and serves as the EWR community lead. The designated organization, in liaison with BC Housing, is responsible for crafting the municipality's extreme weather shelter protocol.
Saanich does not have an EWR community lead as of this article's publication.
On the other hand, warming centres are regulated under the Assistance to Shelter Act which has triggers, usually related to weather warnings from Environment Canada, that allow local governments to open warming centres, explained Henson.
However, Saanich’s main issue is its inability to use its public safety lifeline volunteers, who assist with emergency social support services like during the Quadra fire, for warming centres due to liability concerns.
“We are not able to use [these volunteers] in that context,” said Henson. “The province, which normally provides them with WorkSafe coverage… will not provide them with that coverage for a warming centre.”
“When we deliver emergency support services, it's probably best to describe it as a program that we deliver on behalf of the province and we are required to have an emergency response service.”
Victoria, for instance, has auxiliary staff hired and trained for this purpose, said Henson. Saanich, on the other hand, does not.
Saanich Fire Chief Micheal Kaye added that in other communities, not-for-profits are often stepping up to fill that role.
When Murdock asked what would be required to make that happen, Henson stated it would require “significant collaboration and consultation” involving numerous community stakeholders.
“What would be required would be for us to reach out to community partners if some facilities or societies would be interested,” he said. “We would have to do some groundwork [to designate] what a suitable space would look like and where it is available.”
Council’s deliberation
After the presentation, Coun. Zac de Vries moved to direct staff to clarify the municipality's responsibilities during extreme weather events, particularly regarding vulnerable populations, and the requirements for providing additional shelter or a warming centre. The motion was unanimously supported.
“This is an important topic; one that we would benefit from this report… so that we fully understand the situation, the requirements, the opportunities and the challenges,” said de Vries.
Coun. Colin Plant was the first one to signal his support for the motion.
“I came to this meeting… being open to doing more and I certainly want to know what we can do,” said Plant. “Even though the word is responsibilities, I would like us to do more than just what we are responsible to do.
Recognizing that this report cannot be produced overnight, the councillor is eager to hear back from staff promptly as the winter months are rapidly approaching.
“I hope it comes back relatively quickly because we are in the season when it would have the most impact and should be looked at for this year, not for next year,” said Plant.
Coun. Nathalie Chambers commented that it was time for Saanich to uphold its share of the responsibility, saying Victoria has been “doing the lion's share of this work for a very long time.”
Chambers warned that the issue will worsen in the coming months, adding that Greater Victoria is likely to face “unprecedented weather events” this winter. Urging council to act with haste, she called for immediate action to prevent potential fatalities.
“I really hope that this bomb cyclone is a wake-up call for us because if people die on the streets of Saanich, I don't want to say that I didn't do enough,” said Chambers. “I want to ensure that we are doing our part.”
She proposed Saanich staff consider crafting a plan based on Victoria's model, which she says has been successful in addressing the issue.
Although Coun. Karen Harper also supported the motion, she sympathizes with what Saanich staff is faced with to produce such a document in a timely manner.
“We can't jump straight into this in an appropriate or meaningful way,” said Harper. “I'm looking forward to this report coming back to us as soon as is reasonable because I do think it's something that we want to deal with in an appropriate way as soon as possible.”
Saanich’s chief administrative officer (CAO) Brent Reems outlined the timeline for the report. While acknowledging the urgency of the matter, he stressed the need to "temper expectations" regarding the report's turnaround, noting that completing it this year will be challenging.
“We don't have a staff group that's set up to work on these matters, that transcend the scope of our current emergency program,” said Reems.
In addition, he noted that the report would focus on identifying baseline requirements for the municipality's responsibilities during extreme weather events, not finding an organization ready to fulfill the role of community lead.
Though Reems mentioned being in ongoing discussions with various stakeholders and service providers, this aspect will be covered in a complementary report.
“We're going to continue to pursue those conversations as best we can because, quite frankly, I think the best model for us in Saanich is a model that relies on a nonprofit support partner rather than funding it through our own staff and resourcing,” he said.
As the deliberation came to an end, Murdock thanked city staff and emphasized the complexity of the issue.
“We all have a desire to move urgently,” said Murdock. “No one should be left out in the cold. This is not a 2024 problem alone. We need to make sure that we're working collaboratively with all our regional partners, municipalities and non-profits… We all have an obligation to make sure people are safe in our community.”
- With files from Samantha Duerksen, Bailey Seymour and Christine van Reeuwyk
