The warming centre inside the United Church in downtown Chilliwack is set to close its doors by April 1.
“It will basically be shut down,” said Bill Raddatz, executive director of Ruth & Naomi’s Mission.
It’s been well-used at Yale Road and Spadina since it opened in January as a place for homeless or transient people to get off the streets as the emergency shelters close down each morning.
They could grab a nap on one of the few cots or a coffee and a snack.
“There are no plans in place for operating the centre this summer,” Raddatz noted. “Although there have been some conversations to see if there are any alternative solutions going forward, a lot of it rests with BC Housing.”
Opening the temporary warming centre was a partnership between RAN, BC Housing, City of Chilliwack and the United Church this winter. Recently the homeless population in Chilliwack was shown to have tripled in the 2017 Homeless Count to more than 220 people.
The numbers at the warming centre tell a story of increased use over time. When they opened in January, operators saw about 45 people per day in the centre.
When the bad weather hit, it doubled to more like 100 to 110 people daily.
There were another 35 who would show up at the RAN drop-in, said Raddatz, which was open during the day to get a shower or do some laundry.
“We need to start talking about what will happen come fall,” Raddatz said.
Anecdotally it may have reduced the number of complaints about petty crimes and loitering in the immediate area to some degree, but there were also some complaints about the optics of having people congregate in large groups, often in front of the church on a busy downtown corner.
