Toronto will extend the leases of 17 temporary shelter hotels for up to five years as part of its services for unhoused people, city council decided this week.Gord Tanner, general manager of Toronto Shelter and Support Services, says the city will extend the leases of 17 shelter hotels for up to five years and identify or purchase five new shelter sites this year.
"This plan allows us to create stability going forward so we can continue to get people off the streets and into shelter and into housing and that we are starting to do this now going forward in a more cost effective way that will support the best outcomes possible in the system," Tanner said. On Thursday, council approved a staff report allowing the city to implement the capital plan, giving staff the authority to continue the leases of the shelter hotels as the city seeks to build its base shelter system. Tanner told council that the report doesn't address concerns of particular communities about individual shelter hotels.
The city added thousands of shelter beds during the pandemic to create necessary space between people using the service, signing leases with hotels to provide the accommodations. But staff have long-warned that the shelter hotels are not financially viable in the long-term. "Really, we need to transition out of these shelter hotels," she said. "I would really like to see us move out of these spaces and actually build smaller, decent spaces as well as spaces that are appropriate for different communities."