Location: 92 Peter St.
Shelter residents: Youth 16-24
Number of rooms: Up to 153
Opened: May 2021
Service operators: Native Child and Family Services, Covenant House, YMCA and Eva’s Initiatives
92 Peter Street was leased by the City in December 2021 as a temporary shelter site to provide additional indoor space for youth as part of City’s COVID-19 response. The temporary shelter program at 92 Peter St. will be closing at the end of April 2023 as the property owner has indicated they will resume hotel operations in 2023.
To help ensure youth sector capacity is maintained, the programs run by Covenant House, YMCA, and Eva’s Initiatives will be relocated to another shelter located at 60 York Street. The City is working with Native Child and Family Services to secure a relocation site that meets the needs of their client group.
The City in partnership with its service providers, will work with youth at 92 Peter St. to develop individual relocation plans which could include a move to permanent/transitional housing or another youth shelter program. Staff will assist clients with moves to their new locations and work to ensure a smooth transition of wrap-around supports.
92 Peter Street is an emergency shelter that provides services to youth aged 16-24 of all genders. The main goal of the program is to assist residents with securing permanent, affordable and safe housing with service connections to the community of their choice. Four service providers at the site are: Native Child and Family Services, Eva’s Initiative, Covenant House and YMCA.
The site is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and provides wrap-around support for residents, including:
Community safety is a priority for the City whenever new services open. Ongoing safety planning is a key component of the community engagement process. Native Child and Family Services, Covenant House, YMCA and Eva’s Initiatives’ staff bring management practices that have proven successful and all staff are trained on de-escalation, conflict resolution and crisis prevention, intervention and management.
The site operators work closely with Toronto Police Services and the Shelter, Support and Housing Administration and Corporate Security Divisions of the City of Toronto to develop community safety measures for the location. This includes 24/7 onsite security guards and surveillance cameras installed on all floors accessed by shelter residents.
The City increased outreach in the area around 92 Peter St through Streets to Homes (S2H) and YMCA. S2H provides street outreach and housing related follow up support to assist people who are experiencing homelessness.
The City also added Community Safety Team to conduct patrols in the community and around the property. All Community Safety Team members are trained to respond to immediate non-EMS related matters when made aware by the community. Community Safety Teams patrol community-identified “hotspots” to engage with people who may be outside and pick up discarded needles and other debris. Community Safety Team patrol the area between 1 p.m. and 1a.m., 7 days a week. Community members can also email the Community Safety Team at Securedbyus@gmail.com
There is zero tolerance for any violent and/or criminal activity occurring in the shelter or out in the community. As needed, 911 should be called for crimes in progress or the non-emergency police number 416-808-2222 | 416-467-0493 (TTY) to report crimes where no person is in immediate danger (for example, theft, vandalism, fraud). If a shelter resident is found to have acted inappropriately, aggressively, violently, or criminally, they will be accountable for these acts, which may result in their discharge from the shelter.
Previous community engagement around 92 Peter Street has included:
The City hired third party Community Engagement Facilitator Jane Farrow to lead a community engagement process for this site in alignment with the City Council-approved engagement process. The community engagement plan includes:
If you are interested in joining the CLC or learning more, please email 92peterstreet@gmail.com
You can also contact the shelter service providers onsite through the Hotel Liaison staff at 647-688-9054.
All media, including bloggers, should contact media@toronto.ca.
One Community Solutions
416-397-5637
Telephone support to individuals seeking access to emergency shelter.
416-808-2222 | 416-467-0493 (TTY)
Report crimes where no person is in immediate danger (i.e. theft, vandalism, fraud). https://www.tps.ca/services/online-reporting/
In an emergency, always call 9-1-1 (fires, crimes in progress, medical emergencies requiring an ambulance).