5 things to know about proposed men's emergency and transitional housing shelter in Aurora

Yorkregion.com
March 28, 2022

York Region held an update at a virtual meeting March 21 to explain the latest about its bid to build an emergency and transitional housing facility for men at 14452 Yonge St., south of Industrial Parkway in Aurora.

The current men’s shelter, Porter Place in East Gwillimbury, is aging, with limited opportunity for expansion.

The Aurora proposal hasn’t yet been approved by the Town of Aurora, and York Region will continue with more planning and community consultation.

Here are five things to know about the project:

• The five-storey, multi-service facility would provide short-term emergency and longer-term transitional housing; supportive counselling; life skills training; wellness resources; supports to develop financial literacy skills, education, training and job search abilities; referrals to community resources; and help finding permanent housing.

• The location was chosen due to Aurora’s central location in York Region and its proximity to stores, social and health services and public transit.

• Research indicates property values are not adversely affected by a neighbourhood’s proximity to Housing York social housing, according to the region. For example, Belinda’s Place homeless shelter for women opened in 2016, and the average selling price of a home in the area has jumped $400,000 since then.

• When one resident expressed strong safety concerns, York Regional Police Sgt. Matthew Reid presented some crime statistics. In the last 12 months, police were called to Porter Place 36 times, mostly for residents with mental health concerns but also for assault and drug activity. During the same time, police received 20 calls for Belinda’s Place, mostly for mental health concerns and partners of the women breaching court orders to stay away from them. Police were called 24 times to the plaza north of the proposed Aurora shelter, mostly for shoplifting, fraud and counterfeit incidents. York Region said the Aurora shelter would have skilled staff to support residents around the clock. It also uses “good neighbour agreements,” which outline expectations for positive community living.

• One resident praised the proposed shelter as a place for people in need to recover, stabilize and build resiliency. There are many reasons why people need emergency and transitional housing, including employment loss, health concerns and family breakups, York Region said.