A new mental health and addictions hospital and 2,000 housing units will be built in Winnipeg replicating a housing project based in Toronto that saw a decrease in ER visits and millions of savings.
Prime Minister Mark Carney promised to end homelessness across the country within a decade, at a news conference at Wehwehneh Bahgahkinahgohn on Friday. Winnipeg is set to receive $1 billion to build a Winnipeg Centre for Mental Health and Addictions and transitional homes, according to the 2026 federal budget.
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The location for the housing and hospital has not been determined.
Dunn House, the housing project in Toronto that Winnipeg will , reported a 52 per cent reduction in emergency room visits and more than $2 million of savings, according to the budget.
“There is a huge cost to the status quo. The status quo is not working,” said Kinew. “We’re gonna get it done right, and we’re gonna get it done quick — and the housing similarly for us to stand up 2,000 housing units and get people settled in by 2031 means we’re going to be looking everywhere.”
The housing units will have rooms, medical offices, and shared spaces like the kitchen and community room, said Doug Rollins, the City of Toronto’s executive director housing secretariat.
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