Editor:
Re: “Council rejects Ebbtide shelter site, Upper Deck could open by Christmas,” Dec. 8.
Mayor Milne promised us more transparency in his government. Then why was the meeting and vote about the Ebbtide homeless shelter held in secret, so we will not know which council members voted to deny the shelter to house 40 homeless?
At a later meeting, council gave first reading for a smaller shelter for 22 people at the Upper Deck Guesthouse.
The reason given for denying the Ebbtide shelter was that the neighbourhood had experienced a large amount of social housing already, and that the space has already been reserved for a park and playground. But the Upper Deck Guest House shelter was approved in the same neighbourhood, and the Ebbtide park (promised four years ago by the previous mayor and council) has had no progress under Milne.
With 90 of our community homeless, most of those seniors, a huge opportunity has been missed to substantially increase the number of homeless spaces. Instead we will be able to shelter only 22 homeless and the rest will be exposed to a winter on our streets because of council’s decision.
Graham Moore, Sechelt
