Opening new doors,

creating new
possibilities

Position paper opposing the Salvation Army

proposed shelter development in Vanier
Prepared by:
the SHCHC Board of Directors
November 15, 2017
 To: Councillor Jan Harder - Chair, Planning Committee

Re: The Salvation Army plan to develop a new multi-purpose

facility on 325, 327, and 333 Montreal Road, 334 Montfort
Street and 273 Ste. Anne Avenue, Vanier, Ottawa

File No: D01-01-17-0013, D02-02-17-0062, D07-12-17-0077

Dear Councillor Harder,

With specific reference to the Planning Committee

We are concerned about the Salvation Armys plan for a new,

multi-program facility located on Montreal Road in Vanier in-

tended to serve vulnerable individuals who are homeless in

As a citizen, and prior to joining SHCHC, I
felt largely powerless to address the issue of
homelessness. But now, I am in a position where
I have a privileged opportunity to work from
the inside, as a policy maker and a community
Ottawa. We, along with the Coalition of Community Health
and Resource Centre members (attached), have had an op-
portunity to review the Planning Rationale document that has
been submitted to the City of Ottawa for a proposed Official
Plan Amendment, a Zoning By-law Amendment, and a Site
Plan Control application.

leader, to effect meaningful change and carry the
conversation to my neighbours, fellow residents,
and fellow elected officials.
- Lynn Marchildon, Board Chair of the
Sandy Hill Community Health Centre
Specifically, we are concerned that the proposed Salvation
Army shelter development has not addressed adequately a
question that the Ontario Municipal Board highlighted in 2004
in an appeal in Toronto which stated: it is valid to question the
type of activity to be generated by the use, the intensity of that
activity, and whether the neighbourhood context and the use
are compatible.

Aside from the proposed 140 emergency shelter beds, it is our

understanding that all the residential, transitional, treatment
and stabilization programs (as separate and distinct zoning
variances) must meet the specific zoning criteria under the
permitted use. In this case, it would permit the use by the zon-
ing variance to include community centres, community health
and resource centres, emergency services, group homes and
rooming houses.

2 | Page POSITION PAPER OPPOSING THE SALVATION ARMY

The current zoning of the property in question, which spe-
cifically relates to the below programs, is considered a R4E
[1340], or a Residential Fourth Density zone, pursuant to the
approved City By-law 2008-250, as amended. This zoning
would, in our opinion, restrict each of the below programs to a
maximum of 10 residents, unless there is an exception made
for each of these programs on their own merit. If an exception
is made by this Committee, it would have to be under Sec-
tion 125(d) of the By-law. This means that this property is not
subject to the requirement that one program be located a min-
imum distance from any other lot on which another program
is located. Further, the programs on an individual basis would
only be permitted to house a maximum of 30 residents.

20 beds for addiction stabilization (a pre-requisite to the

addiction program).
30 beds for addiction recovery (Anchorage program).
30 beds for the mens work program. It was inspiring to learn about all the great work
being done in our community to help those who

42 beds for a new flex program (to help homeless men
with developmental challenges). find themselves in the circumstance of poverty.
28 beds for residential life skills program. Collectively, supporting Housing First principles,
60 beds for medical care (to be run by Ottawa Inner City we will end chronic homelessness in Ottawa.
Health).
- Aynsley Morris, Board Vice-Chair of the
Sandy Hill Community Health Centre
From Sandy Hill Community Health Centres (SHCHC) read-
ing of the Salvation Armys application for a minor variance
from the Zoning By-law under Section 45 of the Planning Act,
we assert that the Planning Committee cannot grant this mi-
nor variance change based upon the failure of the applicant to
meet the four minor variance criteria or four tests:
The variance is minor; in this case, the development actu-
ally purposes 7 different uses for the property in question.
The variance is desirable for the appropriate development
or use of the property; in this case, the variance is signifi-
cantly different than all other allowed R4E [1340] devel-
opments within the Vanier community. For example, Billy
Buffet House of Welcome on Granville Street is permitted
under the current zoning use to only have a group home
designation, even though it operates as a mens addiction
stabilization program. Currently it has a permitted use of
10 beds.

PROPOSED SHELTER DEVELOPMENT IN VANIER 3 | Page


With funding from the Champlain Local Health
Integration Network it helped build SHCHCs
capacity in the operationalization of our vision
to end homelessness. This added capacity comes
from better coordination of resources, and the
gathering of many individuals, private and non-
profit organizations, outside of our traditional
homeless serving groups, which are ready to
engage in executing the City of Ottawas Plan to
End Homelessness.
- Kenneth Workun, Board Treasurer of the
Sandy Hill Community Health Centre
4 | Page POSITION PAPER OPPOSING THE SALVATION ARMY
The general intent and purpose of the Zoning By-law is
maintained; in this case, the variance is in fact for 7 dis-
tinct and separate programs in a R4# [1340] site. From our
perspective, this does not meet the same standards as
other R4E [1340] designated group homes or treatment/
residential sites within Vanier.
The general intent and purpose of the Official Plan is main-
tained; in this case, the proposed development does not
align with the Main Street planning designation, which has
been applied consistently as the planning standard by the
City of Ottawa since 2008.
With specific reference to the City of Ottawas 10 Year
Housing and Homelessness Plan
At SHCHC, we take pride in our Vision to make the City of Ot-
tawa a more inclusive city. It is our firm belief that the only way
to develop into the even greater city to which we aspire, is to
ensure everybody is brought along; that no one is left behind,
that everyone matters.
Hand in hand with those working on the front lines, we have,
like the Salvation Army and other Alliance to End Homeless-
ness members in Ottawa, long been champions for the cause
of alleviating chronic homelessness. Through our work, it has
become obvious to us, as it has to a growing numbers of peo-
ple because the data is so clear, that an approach known as
Housing First is the best way to move forward. In fact, through
Housing First, we believe that not only can we alleviate chron-
ic homelessness, we can eliminate it.
It is within this context that SHCHC wishes to comment on the
Salvation Armys plan for a new, multi-program facility located
at 333 Montreal Road and intended to serve 350 vulnerable
men who are homeless in Ottawa. At their core, we believe
the Salvation Army are doing their best and working towards
the same goals as we are (to help the homeless), but doing it
in a way that is inconsistent with the City of Ottawas 10-Year
Housing and Homelessness Plan. It is also known to be not
as effective as Housing First, and is associated with negative
consequences on which we would like to comment.
From our perspective, Housing First is a recovery-oriented
approach to ending homelessness that centers on quickly
moving people experiencing homelessness into independent
and permanent housing and then providing additional sup-
ports and services, as needed.

For over the past four years, SHCHC, in partnership with the
Canadian Mental Health Association, Ottawa Branch, with
funding from the Champlain LHIN, has been operating an
intensive case management Housing First Program for 119
chronically homeless individuals. A typical client is a man or
a woman who: has had at least one childhood adverse event
(abuse, severe poverty, attachment disorder), suffers from
depression, anxiety, schizophrenia or PTSD, has numerous
homelessness episodes with at least 2 years of concurrent

homelessness, drinks or uses drugs to the extent that it brings
social or legal problems, has been in jail at least 5 times and
is very institutionalized.
Research has found that Housing First has a tremendous
success rate, so much so that many levels of Canadian gov-
At SHCHC we have opened the door to some very
real possibilities that can resolve homelessness in
a compassionate and effective way. It will not only
make our city a model for how planning, design

ernment have committed to funding Housing First strategies. and caring can dovetail with our humanity, but it
Recently, the federal government committed $2.1 billion over can also be a standard for how the right thing to
11 years toward its Homelessness Partnering Strategy, focus- do can often be the most cost-effective and ethical
thing to do.
ing on Housing First, and it has been reported that the soon-
to-be-announced National Housing Strategy will be based on
- David Gibson, Executive Director of the
the belief that housing is a right. In turn, many municipalities,
Sandy Hill Community Health Centre
including the City of Ottawa, have committed to Housing First
in their 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan.

The worlds largest study on Housing First was conducted

by the Mental Health Commission of Canada. Through this
study, it was demonstrated that $21.73 was saved for every
$10 invested in Housing First measures for those with the
most complex needs. This study also shows that cost savings
ranged from $9,464 to $18,928/year for each person support-
ed through Housing First services (depending on level of acu-
ity and duration of homelessness) (Goering, 2014).

PROPOSED SHELTER DEVELOPMENT IN VANIER 5 | Page


By measuring public life, those who are shaping
the way cities are made can create spaces that
are more inclusive, healthy, and thriving. We
think everyone counts in this work, and thus more
people need to be counting to reveal the vital
importance of people in public space, and make
the case that public life is for everyone and is
possible in every community.
- Brian Legris, Board Director of the
Sandy Hill Community Health Centre
6 | Page POSITION PAPER OPPOSING THE SALVATION ARMY
The ultimate goal of reducing homelessness is to ensure
that homelessness will no longer be a sustained, enduring
experience for anyone in our community. This includes the
adoption of a systems approach grounded in Housing First
philosophies, leading initially to the elimination of chronic and
episodic homelessness and the long-term goal of ensuring
that no one in Ottawa will experience homelessness on the
street or in an emergency shelter for longer than 30 days be-
fore they have access to appropriate, permanent housing and
the support needed to maintain it.
As seen from our Centres progress thus far with our Hous-
ing First program, the City of Ottawas 10-Year Plan to End
Homelessness can be within reach, but it will require unprec-
edented collaboration between all levels of government, the
non-profit sector, philanthropic bodies and the general com-
munity.
We must also ensure that Housing First participants have ac-
cess to high quality clinical and non-clinical recovery oriented
supports. Development of these support teams are well un-
derway, but we need to ensure that the capacity of these sup-
ports grow in step with the creation of new Housing First units.
We can end chronic and episodic homelessness. However, it
requires concerted focus and heavy lifting to create a Housing
First systems approach while preserving existing necessary
emergency services. Only by doing this will we be able to re-
duce pressure on our existing homeless system, so that we
are better equipped to work on the causes of homelessness
and on prevention.
With growing research, it can be seen that homelessness
comes at a great social, economic and moral cost. We must
ask ourselves, can we afford to allow our most vulnerable
neighbours to languish in shelters, temporary lodging, in parks
and under bridges? Given that evidence-based, cost effective
and people-centred solutions exist, we must ask ourselves,
what is stopping us from making the change?
How the citizens of Ottawa choose to respond to homeless-
ness is fundamental to the future of our city. Should we main-
tain the status quo and rely solely on emergency services? Or
should we take the steps necessary to ensure a real solution
for people who have endured persistent, long-term homeless-
ness?

We believe that we can and should take the measures need-

ed to create a complete systems approach to homelessness,
to ensure that future generations of Ottawa can enjoy a com-
munity free of long-term, persistent homelessness and its
damaging effects.

We believe that the City Planning Committee, as well as City

Council, should not perpetuate a homelessness reduction

strategy that:
continues to make housing contingent upon readiness or
on compliance (for instance sobriety);
does not implement the conscientious, explicit and judi-
cious use of current best evidence-based best practices in
The importance of early, sustained, and genuine
engagement with local communities - residents,
business owners, neighbourhood organizations,
and leaders - to understand their history,

making decisions;
continues to use shelters as more than a 30-day emergen- dynamics and unique needs, challenges and
cy stay for chronic homeless people; opportunities must be the minimum standard for
continues to perpetuate a system that can be character- any city planning decision.
ized as a band-aid solution and a disconnected system of
- Karen McMullen, Board Director of the
crisis response;
Sandy Hill Community Health Centre
continues to warehouse people and create community
ghettos, which can define a community as opposed to in-
tegrating within a community;
continues to treat the problem instead of ending chronic
homelessness, which is far cheaper; and
continues to invest in a housing readiness industry instead
of investing in a permanent Housing First solution.

PROPOSED SHELTER DEVELOPMENT IN VANIER 7 | Page

 For these reasons, the Board of Directors of SHCHC believes
the Salvation Army proposed shelter build within the commu-
nity of Vanier should be limited to only emergency housing
with stay times of no longer than 30 days, and significantly
smaller in scale, to be consistent with the surrounding neigh-
bourhood. By reducing the size of the proposed shelter, the
success of integrating within a community has a far better
chance of occurring. In addition, we believe that the Salvation
Armys proposed shelter plans are well meaning, but outdat-
ed, and that evidence shows a much better/more efficient/

proven path to success. With a significant reduction in scope

of this project or, better yet, by redirecting its funding, the

Maybe its not always trying to fix something City of Ottawa could achieve much more success with simi-
broken. Maybe its about starting over and lar investments through the expansion of the City of Ottawas
creating something better. Housing First program.

- Edward Speicher, Board Vice-Chair of the

Sandy Hill Community Health Centre Respectfully submitted by

Lynn Marchildon,
Chair of the Board of Directors,
on behalf of SHCHC Board of Directors

CC: Councillor David Chernushenko, Capital Ward

Councillor Mathieu Fleury, Rideau-Vanier
Hon. Yasir Naqvi, MPP (Ottawa Centre)
Ms. Nathalie Des Rosiers, MPP (Ottawa-Vanier)
Ms. Mona Fortier, MP (Ottawa-Vanier)
Mr. Chad Rollins, Chair of Action Sandy Hill
Ms. Phyllis Odenbach Sutton and Mr. Don Stephenson
- Co-Chairs of Old Ottawa East Community Association
Mayor Jim Watson
Ms. Chantale LeClerc, CEO of Champlain LHIN

8 | Page POSITION PAPER OPPOSING THE SALVATION ARMY

The graph illustrates the success rate of
SHCHCs Housing First Program versus models
that are Treatment as Usual (TAU) and At Home/
Chez Soi (AHCS). At the end of the study, 81%
of Housing First participants were housed for
six months or more, versus 55% of people re-
ceiving other services in the community. Of note
is SHCHCs 76% rate of Housing First clients
over a 2-year time period, in comparison to TAU,
which was less than 40%.
PROPOSED SHELTER DEVELOPMENT IN VANIER 9 | Page
The SHCHC believes:
Housing First represents a paradigm shift in
how to address chronic homelessness;
Housing First is effective in ending chronic
homelessness for a majority of people with
varying backgrounds, and in different con-
texts;
Housing First produces rapid improvements
in community functioning and quality of life;
there is qualitative evidence that Housing
First transforms lives once individuals find
themselves stably housed without any pre-
conditions to permanent housing;
Housing First yields other improvements in
areas, like the reduction of hospitalizations,
substance use problems, community inte-
gration, incarceration and recovery toward
stability.
 Sequencing of outcomes involves first getting These shorter-term outcomes are followed
people engaged in the program, achieving by improvements in functioning, community
housing stability, getting set up with the right integration and quality of life.
health and social services.

10 | Page POSITION PAPER OPPOSING THE SALVATION ARMY

Vision Every one in our community will have an equitable
opportunity for health and wellbeing.

Mission To lead and innovate in person-centred primary

health care and community wellbeing.

PROPOSED SHELTER DEVELOPMENT IN VANIER 11 | Page