Manitoba plans to shut down homeless encampments, move people into housing
Premier Wab Kinew has released a long-awaited plan — involving municipal and Indigenous governments and non-profit organizations — to end Manitoba’s chronic homelessness issue by methodically decommissioning encampments and moving people into housing.
“Today’s the day where we commit to a turning point. We’re going to work together and ensure that everybody has a place to call home and, importantly, that you have the addictions and mental health services to succeed in living with a roof over your head,” Kinew said at Tuesday’s announcement at the Granite Curling Club, across from the legislative building.
Homeless encampments have existed for several years in the trees between the club and the Assiniboine River.
“This is a rich country, and yet, for far too long, people have been left behind. They’ve been left behind without housing, they’ve been left behind without mental health services. They’ve been left behind without a path to stay alive,” Kinew said.
He spoke of his own addictions issues in the past and being given a second chance.
“I have a deep abiding faith in the people of this province that … you can make good on a second chance, too,” he said.
The new plan, called Your Way Home, outlines a strategy, like a ladder, that moves people up to independence. The bottom rung is basic shelter, while the top is the private rental market, with various levels of supported housing in between.
The plan will be quarterbacked by Tessa Blaikie Whitecloud, who has worked in the homeless-serving sector since 2013 as executive director for 1JustCity and, for the last three years, as CEO of Siloam Mission.
Staff were notified on Monday that she is leaving Siloam at the end of the month to join the provincial government. Her new title is premier’s senior advisor on ending chronic homelessness.
Through Blaikie Whitecloud, the province will lead and co-ordinate the plan, working to streamline the efforts of other stakeholders.
Beginning in February, the province and the City of Winnipeg will move people from one encampment at a time into housing.
After a site is selected, a 30-day transition period will be used to get everyone into housing and set up with wraparound support, including flexible funding for people who are experiencing incidental homelessness.
Encampments will only be decommissioned once move-in-ready housing is secured for every person.
The sites will then be cleared by cleanup teams and monitored by foot patrols to ensure they remain clear and the areas can be used safely by the public.
The province’s 2024 budget included $116 million to build 350 social and affordable housing units and repair more than 3,000 units. Those will be incorporated into the new strategy.
The outline for the plan says it will take until the end of 2031 to complete.
“At the end of the next seven years, it is our ambition that every Manitoban has safe and secure housing, our neighbourhoods are safer and sleeping in a tent is no longer an option, because we can provide the housing and supports to help people find their way home.”
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