Shelter demand prompts call for refugee housing
Richmond is urging the federal government to provide more temporary housing for refugees and asylum seekers or pay for their use of the city's homeless shelter, where the newcomers took up about a third of all beds last year.
Councillor Carol Day, whose motion proposing the request was passed unanimously by the council, said local residents experiencing homelessness have been denied shelter spaces because of the “staggering” number of refugees and asylum seekers also in need of accommodation.
Background material on the motion provided to the council says about a third of all beds at the Richmond House Emergency Shelter last year were occupied by asylum seekers or refugees. It says an average of 20 unhoused people every night were put on a waiting list at the shelter, which is operated by the Salvation Army in partnership with the city and B.C. Housing.
“We had 50 per cent more refugees and asylum seekers in 2023 than we did in 2022. So, the numbers are really high,” Day said at Monday night's council meeting.
“We've got to get going on this because the reality is people are sleeping out in the cold, and it's just not acceptable.”
Day said a task force was established last fall to investigate rising homelessness in Richmond, which led to a conversation with an outreach worker. “And they were saying to me, `We can't get anybody into the shelter … because the shelter is full of refugees and asylum seekers,'” Day said in an interview.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said in a statement that it recognized the “significant role” municipal governments played in temporarily housing asylum claimants. It said an additional $362.4 million had been earmarked to reimburse provinces and municipalities for expenses related to housing asylum claimants.
“Municipalities, including the City of Richmond, are required to submit requests for reimbursement for costs incurred,” the statement said, adding that immigration officials were in regular discussions with provinces and municipalities about such expenses.
Day said she was told about half of the refugees and asylum seekers who ended up in the Richmond shelter had entered Canada at the Peace Arch Border crossing. She said the Salvation Army would connect them with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to get support, such as providing emergency funds.
Of the 632 admissions at Richmond House last year, 201 were refugees or asylum seekers, according to Salvation Army data shared by Day. In December, they made up 59 per cent of all admissions. Day said the shelter was operating on a “first come, first served” basis.
Gavin Randhawa of the Salvation Army said they don't differentiate between those in need. “Anyone who does come to the Salvation Army receives assistance based solely on their need and our capacity to help.”