Photo: City of Kamloops / Bluegreen Architecture

Site plan for a proposed shelter at 142 Tranquille Rd., the former site of Butler Auto and RV.

The head of a local non-profit chosen to operate a proposed shelter in North Kamloops says the facility’s intent is to give people support and connections to housing, health care and jobs.

“It’s a shelter that offers low-barrier services, but we incorporate into that the pursuit of recovery and community integration,” Bob Hughes, CEO of ASK Wellness, told Castanet Kamloops.

Hughes said ASK Wellness also operates The Maverick, which offers long-term recovery support programs and job training — part of the reason he believes the nonprofit was successful in its bid to operate the shelter.

“This is where we felt there was real value in being able to create complete pathways from the streets to shelter to housing and then to health and jobs,” he said.

Kamloops city council on Tuesday a report on a 44-bed emergency shelter will be presented proposed for 142 Tranquille Rd., former site of Butler Auto and RV. BC Housing leases the property from the new owner ie listed in a city report as a numbered company associated with prominent local developer Joshua Knaak.

BC Housing has applied for a temporary use permit necessary to operate a shelter, hoping to have the site up and running in time for the upcoming winter season. The board will vote Tuesday on whether to distribute the notice of intent to consider the permit and will make a decision on the matter in late November after a public engagement session is held.

If approved, the project would give the city its much-discussed North Shore Access Center — at least for the next two years.

Planned on-site services

Hughes said ASK Wellness plans to operate the shelter 24/7, with a minimum of three staff members on site at all times. It will not provide a day space for people not using shelter services, but residents can be there at all hours.

“One of the things we find really interesting about this site is the combination of a large open area for the shelter component, but also has a significant amount of clinical and office space available,” Hughes said.

He said people will enter the shelter’s bed space through the office area so services will be easily accessible.

“We’ll have an embedded housing worker who will link people to market housing if it’s available, and then if it’s going to be supportive housing, we’ll do the vulnerability assessment tool on site to basically try to we speed up people’s access. in levels of housing and recovery programming,” Hughes said.

The ASK Wellness Mobile Health clinic will offer medical services two days a week.

Meals will be provided and cultural programming will be provided by the Kamloops Aboriginal Friendship Centre.

Hughes said he would not expect people staying at the shelter to abstain from substance use.

The location of the permanent access center has not yet been found

Carmin Mazzotta, deputy director of community and culture for the City of Kamloops, said community partners will continue to work to find a more permanent location for an access center as the Tranquille property is only a temporary arrangement.

Provincial funding has been committed to the Tranquille site through the Temporary Housing (HEARTH) program for homeless encampment actions until March 31, 2026. The property is also slated for redevelopment over the next two years.

Mazzotta said the site will operate as a pilot project, testing an operating model that aligns with The vision of the Kamloops Access Hub Leadership Group and the North Shore Business Improvement Association 10 principles for social programming.

“Once the lease is up at 142 Tranquille, we hope that by that time, our partners at BC Housing, working with us and our community partners, have been able to identify a more permanent location for a shelter and Access Hub site on the North Shore. he said.

The Kamloops Access Hub Leadership Group, which formed in the fall of 2023, includes local business improvement associations, social agencies, Interior Health, Tk’emlups te Secwepemc, City of Kamloops and BC Housing.

Mazzotta said in the coming months, the group will also look to expand its collaborative model to sites in other parts of the city.

“There is a lot of additional work underway that we hope to provide, together with BC Housing, more support and services for vulnerable populations in our community in 2025 and beyond,” he said, noting that provincial HEARTH funding has was offered for a grand total. of 100 seats.

Mazzotta said that even once a shelter is secured, there remains a need for day spaces and shelters for homeless people in the community. The Access Hub group and board sent a letter to the BC government this summer requesting provincial funding for these types of gathering places.

An in-person meeting about the Tranquille shelter has been planned for Nov. 21 at the McArthur Island Sport and Event Center from 5 to 7 p.m.

Community members are invited to attend to learn more about the partners involved, the funding model, the site’s planned operations and efforts to ensure neighborhood safety.