Winter is coming, and for Montreal's homeless population, the piercing cold can cause severe issues.
For years, the city has been scrambling to find a solution to keep homeless people warm during the brutal cold.
Some past solutions include allowing homeless people to sleep in some of the city's metro stations during extreme weather conditions.
Rosainne Filato, the Montreal Executive Committee member responsible for homelessness, confirmed a new shelter will open in two weeks.
The shelter will be bare bones and is only meant to provide a place to sleep for those seeking shelter from mother nature.
There will be separate areas for men and women, and an area for those with pets.
The new location, which has not yet been determined, will be co-managed by the Old Brewery Mission, Maison du Pere, Welcome Hall Mission and Accueil Bonneau.
Speaking to CTV Montreal, Filato said the decision came after a meeting with several managers of the city’s existing homeless shelters.
"There’s for sure going to be an area that’s going to have around 80 beds for people in situations of homelessness. There’s going to be fewer restrictions. There’s going to be some rooms for people with animals," she said, adding that a shuttle will be made available to the site.
Currently, several sites for the shelter are being considered. The front runner is the old Royal Victoria Hospital site.
James Alexander McKinnon told CTV that he’s run into problems with some of Montreal’s current shelters. He stated the new shelter is a good idea but it doesn’t go far enough.
"I think they should have something like that all year round," he said. "The Royal Vic ain’t too far. It’s huge. They could open up more than 80 beds. They could have residential, too."
With files from CTV Montreal.