Let me add my voice to those calling for the provision of a cold weather shelter in Parksville.
Yesterday, I met a young man trying to get warm and dry after spending the night outside during the weekend's extreme atmospheric river conditions.
If council can't or won't create emergency warming spaces for unsheltered people like him even though beds existed in principle at Orca Place (before the past council made such a service impossible), you're doing an inadequate job of supporting our whole community.
Unless I'm mistaken, the Island Health facility across the street from the Jensen Centre isn't in use for its intended purpose as an addiction recovery centre. Perhaps it could have been utilized to fill the immediate need for a warming shelter.
I hope well before the next civic election in 2026, council will have a plan in place and be operating a facility in collaboration with a social services provider. The need is becoming increasingly evident.
Valerie Dare
Parksville
