Toronto will add over 1,200 shelter spaces for winter months

The City of Toronto is adding more than 1,200 shelter spaces for people experiencing homelessness later this month as part of its winter services plan.

A news release from the city says this figure includes 370 permanent supportive and subsidized housing units, 244 warm centre spaces that will open when temperatures hit -5 C or colder during winter weather warnings, as well as nearly 490 new shelter spaces and 175 surge capacity spaces to open during extreme temperatures.

The city says it will also dispatch more street outreach teams during extreme cold and will continue regular outreach programs to provide warm clothing, sleeping bags and other supplies throughout the winter.

The measures will be in place from Nov. 15 to April 15.

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The city says a select few new shelter spaces will open this weekend as temperatures are expected to plunge to -5 C on Sunday and the city is set to get its first snowfall of the season.

Toronto continues to experience what the city calls a “homelessness emergency” driven by unaffordable housing, insufficient income supports and unmet health needs.

There were more than 15,000 people in Toronto experiencing homelessness last year according to the city’s 2024 Street Needs Assessment.