The City of Montreal expects an increase of 10 to 25% in the number of families who will need emergency accommodation after the 1er July, because they will not have been able to find suitable accommodation.
Posted at 9:15 p.m.
This means that 160 households could have to be housed in hotels because they will find themselves on the street when their lease expires.
Last year, the municipal services came to the aid of 400 families looking for accommodation, and 127 of them, homeless, had to be taken care of and accommodated in hotels. Eight households are still staying at the hotel, currently, since 1er July 2021.
But despite the apprehended increase in requests for aid, the Plante administration does not anticipate any problems.
“We are ready! “says the mayor of the Sud-Ouest borough, Benoit Dorais, responsible for housing on the executive committee.
He mentions in particular that the budget devoted to operation 1er July, which was one million in 2018, has been gradually increased over the years to reach 3.6 million in 2022.
“We set up a kind of “table from 1er July”, a consultation table with several partners”, explains Mr. Dorais. We have people from 211 du Grand Montréal, homeowners associations, the world of CIUSSS, technical resource groups, people from cooperatives, representatives of the Montreal Metropolitan Community, among others. »
All of these organizations are involved in preparations for the coming crisis, including the creation of a bank of housing that will be available for those who have not found it.
“Everyone is in solution mode, we even have the Corporation of Quebec Real Estate Owners (CORPIQ) at our roundtable,” says Benoit Dorais.
But according to Benoit Langevin, opposition councilor at city hall, the administration is not doing enough to prepare for the crisis.
We will not have a different result if we do the same thing as last year. What is needed is to act upstream.
Benoit Langevin, opposition councilor at city hall
The City should not only set up a housing bank, it should also have pre-signed leases which could then be transferred to tenants who cannot find an apartment.
The Ensemble Montréal party had made a proposal to this effect in February, but its motion was rejected by the administration.
The opposition party proposed that this approach aimed at securing housing for vulnerable tenants be carried out in partnership with community organizations, such as the Mission Bon Accueil, which already have expertise in finding affordable housing. It was also suggested that financial assistance be granted to them to cover the costs associated with this research.
“There is an obvious lack of resources to meet all of the needs,” says Benoit Langevin.