C.D.N.-N.D.G. looks at `new approach' for warming centre after safety issues
The Côte-des-neiges—notredame-de-grâce borough is questioning what to do with a new warming centre serving the borough's unhoused population after numerous problems over the winter, including a woman's death.
The centre operated from December to April 1. Hosted in the Multicaf food bank's offices, near Côte-des-neiges Rd., it was managed by a different community organization, Prévention CDN-NDG.
Multicaf director general Jean-sébastien Patrice told the Gazette the neighbourhood needs the service, but the project itself has been “a monumental mess.”
“We have the same worries, concerns and issues as our neighbours,” Patrice said, urging the borough to rethink the project. “For us, the way the centre was run was unacceptable and dangerous.”
The centre was open from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m., offering the unhoused a place to temporarily warm up during the year's coldest months.
Throughout the winter, neighbours and local businesses lodged complaints with the borough about violent behaviour, fights that spilled into the street and an increase in visible drug use and people having what might be described as mental health crises.
Patrice put the blame on the centre's “high tolerance” approach, which he said resulted in a lack of control and structure. Though it was mandated to provide 25 seats for people to warm up, he said, there were at times up to 60 or 70 people on the premises, including drug dealers and people with apartments who came to squat.
The lack of oversight also brought on safety concerns, he noted.
In mid-december, less than a month after the centre opened, a woman who used its services died from a presumed overdose. The Quebec coroner's office confirmed to the Gazette that it is investigating the death, but could not provide details about the victim or the cause of death.
“It's a tragic situation, but it's symptomatic of the type of evaluation done when people entered . ... People could come and go as they pleased; there were no questions asked,” Patrice said. “For us, that's problematic.”
Multicaf offered its office space for the project last winter, sensing there was a need for the service. A similar warming centre previously operated out of a church basement across the street.
Multicaf has welcomed similar clientele for years without issue, so any complaints from the site's neighbours are not a matter of them not wanting such service in their neighbourhood, Patrice said.
“There are no optics of `not in my backyard' here. It's about the kind of approach we want to have in place for the people who live nearby and the people who use the services.”
Prévention CDN-NDG, which managed the centre, has operated in the borough since the late 1980s. The organization declined repeated interview requests from the Gazette to allow it to address the complaints and shed light on what went wrong the night the woman died.
Its executive director first said the organization would like to give a “more accurate picture of the situation,” but later noted it has decided not to comment on the project in the media.
In a statement, the regional health authority for the area, the CIUSSS West Central Montreal, said it played no role in managing the centre beyond providing possible medical care for people experiencing homelessness.
Prévention CDN-NDG received a $55,648 grant for the 2022–23 fiscal year from the CIUSSS du Centre-sud-de-l'île-de-montréal, which funds several resources for the unhoused across the city.
Contacted for this article, Côtedes-neiges—notre-dame-degrâce Mayor Gracia Kasoki Katahwa said the borough is reflecting on how to improve the project for next year.
“Unfortunately, significant challenges and numerous police interventions presented by the halte-chaleur this winter have highlighted the difficulties of cohabitation,” Kasoki Katahwa said in a statement. She stressed the borough is not considering having no warming centre at all, since the service is needed.
“The numerous discussions with the different partners … highlighted the fact that the approach will need to be reassessed to ensure a better cohabitation with the neighbouring houses and businesses in the future,” Kasoki Katahwa said. “We will need to agree on a new approach before next winter and all options are on the table.”
At the borough's March council meeting, a resident who lives next door to Multicaf questioned Kasoki Katahwa about the warming centre.
The man said clients regularly slept in his walkway or on his stairs, broke his fence and left drug paraphernalia across his property. Frequent calls to the police never solved the issue, he added.
“My wife is crying in the middle of the night because we cannot sleep. We have students in the house, teenage girls — they are all afraid for their safety,” he told the borough mayor. “It's a zoo, I'm sorry to (say) that.”
The man pressed Kasoki Katahwa on whether the project is permanent or could be moved next year. The mayor acknowledged there have been “real issues” with the site, but couldn't yet say if it will be moved.
“Please think about the people who live in the area,” the man added.