Sign our shelter petition!
(View signatures so far)

Whereas,

1. 2,660 people were identified as homeless in the 2008 Metro Vancouver homeless count; 1,576 live in the City of Vancouver. There are only 940 permanent shelter beds in Metro Vancouver, with 708 in the City of Vancouver.
   
   
2. People were turned away from Vancouver shelters 43,371 times between April 2007 and March 2008 because the shelter was full. Women and children were particularly impacted by insufficient shelter capacity, with 21,712 (42%) of the turn-aways occurring at women-only shelters.
   
   
3. Vancouver needs 3,200 social housing units immediately, with a commitment to build 800 units per year of safe, supportive housing.
   
   
4. The HEAT shelters have provided low-barrier, accessible shelter to an average of 450 people a night since they were opened this winter.
   
   
5. Without the province to fund them, the HEAT shelters will close on June 30, 2009, turning hundreds of people out into Vancouver’s streets and parks.
   
   
6. The Supreme Court of British Columbia has ruled that depriving homeless people of shelter is a breach of their constitutional rights to life, liberty and security of the person and contrary to the principles of fundamental justice.

THEREFORE, WE THE UNDERSIGNED call on the municipal, provincial, and federal governments to commit funding to ensure that the HEAT shelters remain open until such time as there is sufficient safe, affordable, supportive housing for every person who needs it.