St. Boniface Street Links waits for city council decision on renewing city-owned building's lease

St. Boniface Street Links is waiting to find out whether the city will approve a one-year lease granting it the ability to continue serving Winnipeg's homeless population at a city-owned building in the St. Vital area. 

On Friday, city council's property and development committee will vote on whether to continue a short-term agreement that would allow the outreach organization to lease 604 St. Mary's Rd. for a year at a cost of $1, starting next month and continuing until Nov. 29, 2025. 

The non-profit organization currently operates a 24/7 drop-in and emergency shelter at the city-owned building, which was declared surplus more than four years ago. 

St. Boniface Street Links executive director Marion Willis says she's grateful unsheltered people accessing support through the organization will have a safe place to stay as the weather gets colder this month. However, she worries this might not be the case by next year.

Willis says she would like the site to become the organization's permanent home. 

"It's really difficult to plan when you really have not a lot of certainty and face the threat of, kind of, being homeless as an organization," she told CBC on Tuesday. 

The shelter has been providing steady services in the building since January shortly after the city was unable to find a buyer through a request for proposals near the end of 2023 when it was put up for sale, according to a city administrative report.  

The organization has previously operated pop-up warming shelters at the site. 

The report says Canada's Housing Accelerator Fund Office would prefer the building be redeveloped into affordable housing units, but Willis says it would be counterintuitive to displace the organization in exchange for housing units that might not serve the diverse needs of people experiencing homelessness. 

"We were pretty clear from the beginning that the only building out there that really met our needs was 604 St. Mary's. That continues to be the case," she said. 

"Certainly the city hasn't come up with any other options and so it's really quite disheartening … to think that the city would be considering using the building for other purposes."

St. Boniface Street Links uses the space to provide drop-in services for people seeking income support, secure housing or crisis counselling services, she says. 

Another part of the building is used for a transitional program that gives unsheltered hospital patients with continuing medical needs a place to stay. Since April, the program has helped 130 people with 107 coming directly from a hospital in Winnipeg, she says. 

The organization was given the city's Safe Space grant of $250,000 to provide service capacity on the east side of the Red River last year. It was renewed for another $250,000 this year. 

Brian Mayes, the St. Vital city councillor, says he would be surprised if the property and development committee voted against the short-term agreement.

He would be happy to see St. Boniface Street Links remain at the site permanently. 

"I also think people realize there's a need for this kind of facility … I think all wards should be doing something and I think this is a good use for that site," Mayes said. 

Coun. Sherri Rollins (Fort-Rouge East Fort Garry), chair of the property development committee, says the short-term agreement is perhaps "an easy yes," but adds the building could potentially be used for affordable housing long term. 

"Not all buildings or housing initiatives meet that diversity of need, but holy cow, we need to start somewhere and so while I am alert to the necessity of having 604 meet the needs of St. Boniface Street Links … I'm also alert to the need of that we have to find appropriate housing."