The cold/wet weather mat program, which gives homeless people a place to sleep during the region’s harshest weather, is coming back to Coquitlam.
Monday, city council approved a temporary use permit to allow the homeless shelter to rotate between three churches — Cavalry Baptist, Coquitlam Alliance and Eagle Ridge Bible Fellowship — on a monthly basis between October and March.
The program will operate the same way it did between 2007 and 2015, before it ended following the opening of a permanent shelter in Coquitlam.
Rob Thiessen, the director of the Hope for Freedom Society, said a rise in the number of homeless people in the Tri-Cities makes the temporary shelter program a necessary addition to the services provided at the shelter located at 3030 Gordon Ave.
And unlike other shelters in the area, he said the mat program has rules and barriers for those participating; among those restrictions: There are no ins and outs allowed and anyone who is in possession of drugs or alcohol is not permitted entry. Shelter users are bused to the site from a pre-determined meeting point and the operation is staffed by volunteers between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.
Thiessen said most residents don’t realize a shelter is operating in their neighbourhood because the homeless people are brought in late at night and leave early in the morning. He added that when the shelter operated previously, Hope for Freedom was successful at getting hundreds of people into permanent housing.
“That is the reason we want to have another crack at this,” he said. “I personally believe that these statistics show that homeless people that come into our shelter get out of homelessness.”
Thiessen told The Tri-City News last week that BC Housing approached his organization earlier this year about re-launching the mat program. He added that while the permanent shelter has been helpful in alleviating some of housing pressures in the community, demand for places to sleep goes beyond the facility’s 30 emergency beds and 30 transitional beds.
He also said that because the permanent shelter is considered low barrier, some of the homeless, particularly older people, do not feel comfortable spending the night at the facility.
“Not all homeless people out there can thrive in that environment,” he said. “There is an opportunity to have a peaceful night sleep and be in an environment that is drug free. That is attractive to some people, even those that are addicted.”
During Monday’s hearing, Sandy Burpee, a longtime Tri-City housing advocate, said the mat program would provide an alternative to 3030 Gordon, which he said has been full most nights since it opened.
He said that the rise in homelessness began before the permanent shelter opened in 2015 and, according to the most recent numbers from the Hope for Freedom Society, there are 157 people without a secure housing in the Tri-Cities.
“With the mat program, there is a viable alternative,” he said. “When someone comes to the door at 3030 Gordon and they are full, they can be told that they do have an alternative.”
Still, not everyone who attended Monday’s public hearing in Coquitlam council chambers was happy to hear that the cold/wet weather mat program would be operating out of a church basement in their neighbourhood. Several parents said they had children at the daycare at Cavalry Baptist or attended nearby Parkland elementary.
“I am not sure how I feel about dropping my children off in an area where homeless people are coming and going,” said one mother.
But another parent with children at the daycare said she had changed her mind after hearing information provided by Thiessen at the council meeting.
“My concerns I brought here tonight I don’t have anymore,” said Lisa Schmidt. “If the participants are bused in and bused out, that alleviates my safety concerns about the program.”
Kim Parker, chair of Parkland’s parent advisory council, said many of the concerns brought to Monday’s hearing could have been alleviated had the city been better about communicating the program to residents in the neighbourhood. She said she had only heard about the mat program initiative Monday morning, hours before the council meeting.
“A lot of our issues and a lot of the people here would not be voicing concerns if this was actually told to us and explained in an appropriate and timely manner,” she said, later adding: “It has upset many people at our school for needless reasons.”
YOU CAN VOLUNTEER AT SHELTERS
Hope for Freedom Society is still looking for volunteers to help run its cold/wet weather mat program this winter. Those who are interested in helping out can email andrea@hopeforfreedom.org.
gmckenna@tricitynews.com
@gmckennaTC
