Anti-poverty group wants homeless shelter to stay open

An anti-poverty group in Greater Sudbury is calling on the city to extend the operating season of the Emergency Out of the Cold Homeless Shelter, which is slated to close on March 31.

“There has been very high demand for the Emergency Shelter services, with upwards of 50 people having used the shelter on some nights this winter,” said a release Wednesday from the Sudbury Coalition Against Poverty. “All of these people will be thrown back out onto the streets on April 1, despite record low temperatures in Sudbury for this time of year.”

The city began operating the shelter a year ago after the Elgin Street Mission stopped offering the service. It partnered with the Salvation Army, which runs the facility out of a city building – the former police station on Larch Street.

In the release, S-CAP said more than 50 homeless people attended a meeting March 19 on shelter options in Sudbury. Among their demands are a shelter open 24 hours a day, that lets people in without registering, not run by the Salvation Army, and that allows everyone inside, including those under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

“In order to voice these demands, S-CAP is organizing a rally and march to defend and expand our emergency homeless shelter,” the release said.

The event take places Friday at 2 p.m. outside the Samaritan Centre at the corner of Elgin and Shaughnessy streets. All homeless folks, shelter users, and supporters are called on to attend.

For more information, please contact S-CAP at 249-878-7227.