Neighbourhood reacts to H4 site location
Neighbours of 700 Wellington Ave. aren’t vehemently opposed to the new site of the Homelessness and Housing Help Hub (H4).
“They're people like anybody else and they need somewhere to be,” one resident said, not wanting to use her name or image on television.
It’s a sentiment shared by many in the area of Wellington Avenue and Elliott Street, where the city plans to build H4, but there are some who are not overjoyed by the announcement.
“I have lived here for 40 years,” said a woman named Pat while calling in to the Morning Drive on AM800. “I am so used to councils ignoring us. We don't exist.”
Ward 2 Coun. Fabio Costante said there were other sites that didn't require expropriation, including a site already owned by the city.
“I respect the will of council and the decision that council makes. We could have re-directed the money to actually building housing that we needed yesterday. This is a problem in our community that is growing in nature,” Costante said.
Residents say there are homeless people who already wander the neighbourhood.
“I see them walking by here with bags and carts and I feel so bad for them,” one resident said, who also withheld her identity.
She said residents dig through the garbage and their recyclables but don't cause any problems.
“When they build this place we're going to have hundreds, if not more. Then what's going to happen?” she asked.
She’s worried crime could spike.
It’s a concern shared by a local business owner who already deals with that problem.
“We have concerns about our safety,” said Farhan Katlin, partner of F.S.K. Furniture on Wyandotte Street East, which is a stone’s throw away from the site.
Owners worry issues will amplify with H4 in their backyard.
“If the city is doing something about the safety of the nearby people I'm absolutely fine with it,” Katlin said.
Ward 3 Coun. Renaldo Agostino, who lives in the core, said the congregating he sees downtown will not carry over to H4.
“It's all about building it for the right cost, with the right people and with the right purpose in mind,” Agostino said. “Not stuffing people into a gymnasium and expecting to see results. That's part of the problem.”
Agostino feels the new location will help temper drug peddling, “There's not going to be a situation where the community has to worry about the predators going to take advantage of these poor people that are trying to recover. That won't happen here.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Very expensive lunch': Sask. driver says he got a cellphone ticket for using his points app in the drive-thru
A warning from a Saskatoon driver about using your fast-food app while in the drive-thru line — a trip to get some free lunch cost him a lot more than he bargained for.
Forecast turns favourable in fight against wildfire threatening northern B.C. town
A low-pressure system moving into northern British Columbia is expected to dampen wildfire activity that has forced several thousand people to flee their homes in and around Fort Nelson, the BC Wildfire Service says.
New study shows financial impact of homelessness on our health-care system
A new study out of London, Ont. lays out the cost of the homelessness crisis on our health-care system.
B.C. YouTuber ordered to pay $350K for 'relentless' online defamation campaign
An 'unrepentant' YouTuber has been ordered to pay $350,000 in damages as compensation for a 'relentless' campaign of defamation waged online against a business owner and his company, the B.C. Supreme Court has ruled.
Chief says grave search at B.C. residential school brings things 'full circle'
Chief Robert Michell says relief isn't the right word to describe his reaction as the search begins for unmarked graves at the site of a former residential school he attended in northern British Columbia.
'Endless Shrimp' just one misstep for Red Lobster as it eyes bankruptcy protection
While it's unclear what these closures might mean for the 27 restaurants in Canada, Red Lobster is expected to file for bankruptcy protection in the U.S. this month.
Ontario's 'Crypto King' Aiden Pleterski arrested
Of the $40-million Aiden Pleterski was handed over two years, documents show he invested just over one per cent and instead spent $15.9 million on "his personal lifestyle." The 25-year-old Oshawa, Ont. man was arrested and charged with fraud and money laundering on Tuesday.
Evacuees concerned over conflicting information on Fort Nelson wildfire
Evacuees staying in Fort St. John have expressed concern about how little they are hearing about what is happening in their now deserted city.
Insurance claims skyrocket and tensions remain high after slew of natural disasters
According to new data released by Statistics Canada, the cost of catastrophic insurance claims in Canada between 1983 and 2008 was $400 million each year.