Brandon reopens overnight warming shelter as city waits for homelessness strategy rollout

As freezing temperatures return, Brandon has reopened a temporary overnight drop-in to help people escape the cold — but those who work with homeless people in Manitoba's second-biggest city say short-term fixes aren’t enough, and more permanent supportive housing is needed.

The non-profit social services agency Life’s Journey will operate the drop-in warming shelter for the first time this year. It was initially created in 2022 to ease pressures on the city’s only overnight shelter, which had reached capacity.

This year's opening comes as homelessness rises and the estimated number of reported encampments has doubled compared to last year in the city, according to Shannon Saltarelli, the City of Brandon's community housing and wellness co-ordinator.

She and other advocates say long-term housing and sustainable provincial investment are urgently needed.

"We've seen a lot of people enter back into homelessness who were previously housed, which is very concerning," Saltarelli said.

Providing shelter space to keep people safe is important, "but that's not the solution to homelessness," she said.

"Most importantly, we need to … get them into safe and appropriate housing."

In January, the province launched its "Your Way Home" plan to end chronic homelessness, which focuses on moving people from encampments into permanent housing. However, that plan hasn’t yet been implemented in Brandon.

Mayor Jeff Fawcett said the city is collaborating with community groups and other levels of government to address housing concerns.

"The province does want housing of some kind. They're less inclined to just add more overnight beds," Fawcett said.

While housing isn’t a municipal responsibility, the city is working to find solutions, he said.

"A lot of things have to fall into place. But we're at the table with [the province]," he said.

Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith told CBC the province is working to expand housing, but her office confirmed the NDP government's homelessness strategy has not expanded outside Winnipeg, and there’s no timeline for it to come to Brandon.

According to the province, as of last month, the Your Way Home strategy had been able to provide housing to 100 people from encampments in Winnipeg.