Complaints about the homeless shelter at 3030 Gordon Ave. in Coquitlam have dropped dramatically since it opened in 2015.
But a Coquitlam councillor wants more information to make sure all the concerns associated with the shelter, which is run by RainCity Housing, are being addressed.
“Things are for the better. Some progress has been made as far as community impacts,” said Coun. Terry O’Neill who is a member of a shelter task force that is chaired by Coun. Chris Wilson.
But he said he would like to hear more directly from business and emergency services, such as police and fire.
“We know that there have been almost daily drop-ins by the uniformed crime reduction unit… and lots of response from emergency services. Those are visible things for business right around there,” O’Neill said.
Friday, the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce and local businesses will have an opportunity to discuss any issues with members of the task force in a public meeting.
But according to a staff report, negative impacts are felt most significantly by a small number of businesses and residents closest to the shelter; overall community complaints have dropped from a high of 84 in 2016 to 38 in 2017, with 11 so far this year. There are also fewer drug-related concerns: 16 in 2017 compared to 24 in 2016 and five so far this year.
Other concerns in ranked order are:
• unauthorized presence, 20 complaints in in 2016 and seven last year;
• misconduct, 21 complaints in 2016 compared to 10 last year;
• criminal conduct, 13 complaints in 2016 compared to three in 2017;
• and littering, six complaints in 2016 and two last year.
So far this year, there has been one unauthorized presence complaint, four misconduct complaints, one criminal conduct complaint and no littering complaints.
And since the shelter opened, there were 250 indications of responses and actions taken by police, the city, RainCity Housing, Fraser Health, BC Housing and others.
The information comes from meeting notes of the 3030 Gordon Ave. Community Advisory Committee, results of a 2017 business impact survey, RainCity reports and correspondence from the public.
