Vancouver warming centre at capacity

A Vancouver warming centre says it’s reached capacity every night since opening Wednesday due to the frigid temperatures.

The Odd Fellows Hall located at West 8th Avenue and Granville Street is able to accommodate 20 people.

Chris Thomson, a member who helps run the centre, said anyone the charity can’t accommodate is offered help to find another warming centre in the city. He said due to the inclement weather, when the hall opens, there’s already a lineup out the door.

“The last three nights, it’s been absolutely packed and it’s been packed immediately,” Thomson said.

Thomson said ideally, he'd like to see the hours extended at the warming centre.

“We try to wait until the last moment, but when it’s freezing cold and you see them go, we feel bad about it, but there’s nothing we can do,” he said.

Bruk Melles, the director of homelessness services with the City of Vancouver, said its warming centers hold about 150 spaces nightly. On Thursday evening, Melles said spaces were 82-per-cent full.

“Many of the sites were either at capacity or close to capacity,” Melles said.

On Friday, representatives from dozens of organizations on the Downtown Eastside signed a letter calling on the government to “rapidly fund” more 24-hour warming spaces across Vancouver for those without a home. 

The call comes days after the city enforced a bylaw at Oppenheimer park, removing people’s tents and belongings.

Ryan Sudds, an organizer with Stop the Sweeps, said he's not sure where many people ended up after the decampment Tuesday.

“Especially when we see this kind of displacement, you can’t ask someone to take down a tent in this kind of weather and not give them a safe alternative,” Sudds said.

The only 24-hour warming centre open in the city is located at The Nest downtown. 

Melles said with extreme weather becoming more common, the city is open to exploring other solutions. She added the during the day, residents can access public libraries and community centres, some of which, like the Carnegie Community Centre, are open two hours earlier due to the cold.

“We absolutely understand the need for extended hours, and really try to encourage people to use these services throughout the day and the evening services,” she said.