Temporary church shelter closing, but still no word on operator for new space in Moncton

For the past three weeks, Rev. Chris Van Buskirk and a dedicated group of volunteers and staff at St. George's Anglican Church have done everything they can to keep the estimated 400-plus people in Moncton who are homeless from freezing outside.

The same week Van Buskirk began opening the parish basement at 9:30 p.m., a 35-year-old Moncton man was found dead outside Moncton city hall. He had been released from jail that morning and overdosed in the afternoon. There were no shelter beds available for him that night.

After the death of Luke Landry, which occurred after two months of constant calls for more emergency shelter beds from frontline groups, including the YMCA ReConnect outreach program, local churches and Ensemble Greater Moncton, the Department of Social Development promised to act.

A week after Landry's death, Minister Dorothy Shephard sent what she called a "tiger team" to Moncton, led by a deputy minister to ensure "very fast results."

However, two weeks after the team visited Moncton with big promises, there is still no plan in place for the hundreds of people without homes, and VanBuskirk said the church basement is closing on Monday morning, Dec. 19.

"We've done all that we can do," he said. "We're a small staff. The volunteers have been absolutely tremendous but we're getting near the end of our capacity to operate."

When asked if he was confident there would be a new place for people to go when the church shelter closes, VanBuskirk said: "I honestly — I don't know. That's a real concern."

Still no operator named

City of Moncton spokesperson Isabelle LeBlanc said in a statement on Monday that officials were "putting the final touches on an agreement for the seniors' space," referring to the Moncton Lions Community Centre on St. George Street which has been provided by the city to house up to 120 people.

As far as the operator, we're still working on it. It unfortunately takes a bit of time as there are agreements with the city and with the Province of New Brunswick."

In the meantime, officials with the City of Moncton said they will have heated tents with cots ready to fill the gap until the new indoor shelter space is ready in January.

CBC News contacted the Department of Social Development to ask what the team is doing, who is leading the opening of the new shelter, and whether the department is confident it will open by Monday evening, but so far there has been no response.

VanBuskirk said to date, there has been no support from the provincial government for the $5,000 weekly expenses for its ad hoc shelter that has more than 80 people sleeping on the basement floor of the church each night.

"When people come in in the evening we have a lunch — something hot to eat," he said of what they have been offering.

VanBuskirk said blankets were donated by the community, and guests are given a space to sleep on a carpet until the next morning, when the church offers its regular breakfast, shower and laundry services.

He hopes that on the morning of Dec. 19 they will be able to deliver all of the blankets to another shelter.

'It's certainly difficult'

Besides having to cancel normal parish activities in the evening to accommodate people who need a warm place to sleep, VanBuskirk said it has been a tremendous amount of work for staff and volunteers.

They have been making sure they have enough food and volunteers, sorting donations, doing laundry and helping their guests settle in each night.

"It's been a lot of work but it's certainly been a good and a positive experience."

While there have been many "generous donations" from the community, it has cost "easily $20,000," VanBuskirk said, and so far there has been no funding from any level of government, nor any wraparound supports from the provincial government.

VanBuskirk said volunteers are not equipped to deal with the mental health and addiction issues they see on a nightly basis.

"Just trying to provide a safe, warm space and some compassion. That really is all we thought we could do as a Band-Aid … when we opened."

VanBuskirk says they are caring for multiple sets of siblings, and even an adult mother with adult children.

"There are certainly some folks who carry very heavy loads with mental illness and then of course, as we note, some of the folks are really struggling with addictions."

He hopes that "by the grace of God" the church will break even with the many donations received.

After the overnight shelter closes, VanBuskirk says his team will continue to offer a breakfast, showers, clothing and Wi-Fi to people Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 11:30 a.m.