King Street Emergency Shelter

We are setting up another community meeting to discuss updates on the King Street Emergency Shelter. This meeting will be hosted by the Region of Waterloo, with presentations and updates from key partners.

Who: Region of Waterloo

What: Updates and information will be shared about the emergency shelter services at the King Street site and changes that will be made for the final months of operation.

When: Thursday, September 12, 2024 from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Where: Rockway Centre, 1405 King Street East, Kitchener

RSVP: If you plan to attend, please RSVP to interimhousingsolutions@regionofwaterloo.ca.

If you require accommodation or an accessibility service to attend this event, please email interimhousingsolutions@regionofwaterloo.ca.

Dear Neighbours,

Following the community meeting we held on Thursday, June 20, we want to update on items addressed at the meeting and updates on the changes we are implementing.

Security:

In response to community feedback, we have increased security staff both at the shelter, and in the surrounding neighbourhood. Shelter staff remain responsive to calls regarding participants who may need support. Regional security staff are also available on site and on mobile patrol.

Patrols by the City of Kitchener bylaw and Waterloo Region Police Service (WRPS) will continue.

Shelter supports:

We know there is a need for more health care supports to participants of the shelter. The Working Centre has increased the number of their staff, including dedicated health care professionals, to better meet these needs. They also have outreach workers to support individuals and more staff to handle the phone lines.

Needle and drug paraphernalia sweeps:

The Working to Improve Neighbourhood Safety (WINS) program, will be increasing their dedicated sweeps from two times a week, to four times a week. Security staff and the City of Kitchener are also able to handle needle pick-ups and continue to do so.

A new Community Advisory Committee:

A new Community Advisory Committee has been formed and meets monthly to discuss the King Street shelter and provide updates as they become available. The Committee includes members of the community, community partners, and is organized by the Region. As discussed at the Community Advisory Committee, we will set broader community meetings as they are needed. Updates and more details will be posted on the Engage WR King Street Emergency Shelter website when they become available: https://www.engagewr.ca/king-street-shelter.

Shelter programming:

A fence and shade structures were installed at the side of the shelter to provide a clear outdoor space for participants to rest and to reduce loitering on King Street. The Working Centre is also providing more programming throughout the day, and will be utilizing a storage shed for possessions to reduce clutter.

Streamlined responses:

The Working Centre answers calls during the day as they come in, and responds to voicemails left after hours within one hour.

We have also created a new King Street Shelter Contact Card, with more details on who to call. Please find a copy below.

Quiet Hours:

The Working Centre has a Quiet Hours policy from 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. daily, to reduce noise during the night.

System Updates:

On June 19, Regional Council approved the purchase of 84 Frederick Street in Kitchener from the YWKW. Following the close of the building, the Region will work on renovating and an operating model for the space when it re-opens as an emergency shelter.

We continue to work on these changes and gather feedback from the community and the community advisory committee.

Thank you,

Housing Services

As a follow-up to the last community meeting, we are setting up another community meeting to discuss updates on the King Street Emergency Shelter. This meeting will be hosted by the Region of Waterloo, with updates from key partners.

What: Updates and information will be shared about the emergency shelter services at the King Street site and changes that will be made for the final months of operation.

When: Thursday, June 20, 2024 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Where: Rockway Centre, 1405 King Street East, Kitchener

RSVP: If you plan to attend, please RSVP to interimhousingsolutions@regionofwaterloo.ca.

If you require accommodation or an accessibility service to attend this event, please email interimhousingsolutions@regionofwaterloo.ca.

In response to community feedback received at the King Street Shelter neighbourhood meeting we held on Thursday, May 23, 2024, I would like to provide an update on the changes we are introducing.

Increasing security:

We have increased the presence of security during the overnight hours. Patrols by the City of Kitchener bylaw and Waterloo Region Police Service (WRPS) will continue.

Increasing staffing:

We will increase staffing, including: more staff to patrol, outreach workers to support individuals, health care support onsite and more staff to handle the phone lines.

Increasing needle and drug paraphernalia sweeps:

We have asked the Working to Improve Neighbourhood Safety (WINS) program, security staff and the City of Kitchener to increase their needle pick-ups in the area and track what is collected for reporting purposes.

Creating a new Community Advisory Committee:

We are creating a new Community Advisory Committee, working with the neighbourhood on what the committee looks like and how it operates. We will also host more frequent community meetings. The next community meeting will be on Thursday, June 20 at 7 p.m. at the Rockway Centre. More details will be posted on the Engage WR site in the coming weeks. Both of these efforts will be led and coordinated by Regional staff.

Improving shelter programming:

Shelter activities will be expanded during the day, facilitated by The Working Centre, to provide more programming and support to individuals throughout the day. Shade structures will be added to the side of the building to reduce loitering on King Street.

Exploring streamlined response:

We are looking at improving the response and escalation process to address community concerns.

Examining the implementation of a curfew:

We are working through the pros and cons of a curfew. We will provide more updates on a decision on a curfew in the coming weeks.

Some of these changes are already happening, like increased security and starting the community advisory board. Some changes will occur as soon as possible.

Thank you,

Peter Sweeney