April 30, 2021
Tipinawâw, the temporary accommodation at the Edmonton Convention Centre set up for vulnerable Edmontonians over the winter months, will close today, April 30.
Boyle Street Community Services, Bissell Centre, The Mustard Seed, Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society, Homeward Trust and the City of Edmonton opened Tipinawâw on October 30, 2020. The 24/7 accommodation space has provided people experiencing homelessness with access to essential services such as overnight accommodations, meals, laundry, and showers. Housing, mental health and cultural supports have also been provided.
“Tipinawâw has provided vulnerable Edmontonians with a place to go, to stay safe and warm and to access important services to support them on their path towards stable housing,” said Christel Kjenner, Director of Affordable Housing and Homelessness. “The collaborative response of the homeless serving sector has been critical in meeting the needs of vulnerable people since the start of the pandemic when physical distancing requirements reduced the shelter spaces and day spaces available.”
Tipinawâw has been consistently full for both day services and overnight shelter since opening. Drop-in day services have been accessed by more than 600 unique individuals per day. Overnight shelter has been accessed by up to 300 individuals per day. More than five thousand unique individuals have accessed the facility.
Day Services after April 30
Operating agencies at Tipinawâw will begin providing day drop-in services at other locations as of May 1 to ensure essential needs for individuals are being met after Tipinawâw closes.
- Bissell Centre will restart daytime services at its permanent location at 10530 96 Street with extended daytime hours, seven days a week. People will have access to meals, washrooms, mental health, financial, employment, housing and cultural services.
- Boyle Street Community Services will offer additional daytime services and hours at its permanent location at 10116-105 Avenue, providing access to washrooms, clothing and personal hygiene supplies, cultural supports, housing, mental health, ID services, and harm reduction and basic health services. Additional outdoor programming will be offered.
More than 90 daytime spaces will be available at any given time to serve up to 395 unique visitors each day. The City is continuing to explore options to increase daytime services for vulnerable Edmontonians.
Overnight Shelter
- There is available space for overnight shelter currently in the system. The provincial government has indicated there are enough shelter beds to accommodate everyone who needs emergency shelter.
- Hope Mission will transfer their temporary shelter operations from Commonwealth Stadium to the Spectrum building at Exhibition Lands. It will be in operation from early May until October 31, 2021. Up to 150 people a day will have access to overnight shelter, meals, washrooms, showers and social supports.
- Hope Mission downtown, Women’s Emergency Accommodation Centre, Youth Empowerment & Support Services are all still open 24/7 and available to people in need.
- The Mustard Seed is also operating 24/7 and overnight shelter spaces at four churches on the south side.
These overnight spaces will be supplemented with up to 200 new transitional housing spaces primarily funded by Homeward Trust through federal funding.
The total cost of Tipinawâw is $13.9 million. The federal and provincial governments provided $8 million through funding to help municipalities respond to COVID-19. Other funding was provided by the City ($2.5 million), Homeward Trust ($1.65 million), and the Family and Community Support Services Program ($1.5 million).
