Location: 66 Third St.
Demographic: Seniors
Anticipated capacity: Approximately 50 people
Estimated opening date: 2028-2030
Service Operator: Christie Ossington Neighbourhood Centre (CONC)
The City of Toronto has secured 66 Third St. for use as a municipal shelter that will provide critical services to help seniors experiencing homelessness move toward permanent housing.
The shelter is part of the City’s Council-approved Homelessness Services Capital Infrastructure Strategy, which aims to open up to 20 new shelters citywide by 2033. These sites will help respond to demand and stabilize the shelter system. Learn more about the Strategy.
The City is committed to working with the local community to support the success of the site and has hired Community Engagement Facilitator Public Progress to lead engagement. More information, including a Bulletin with answers to frequently asked questions, can be found in the Working with the Community tab below.
Homelessness is experienced in all corners of Toronto. Shelters are needed across the city to support people who are facing an immediate housing crisis and may be staying in parks, or other public spaces, to get the services they need to find and secure housing.
Staff assessed 100 sites across Toronto to see if they met the City’s criteria for shelter use.
In 2023, the Toronto Parking Authority reviewed its assets to determine which ones were surplus to operational needs. Through this exercise, it was determined that the parking lot at 66 Third St. was no longer required. CreateTO, an agency that manages the City’s real estate holdings, then conducted a thorough evaluation and determined that the lot would be best used as a shelter location when considering the City’s needs.
There are a limited number of available areas in Toronto that meet the size, budget and zoning requirements needed to be a municipal shelter. Shelters are often close to libraries, schools, community centres and health care services.
City Council has delegated authority to staff to approve and develop new locations for shelters and 24-hour respite sites. This is to ensure the City can work quickly to respond to shelter system pressures and provide critical supports to as many people as possible. It also helps to accelerate and depoliticize the shelter development process, which is consistent with a human-rights based approach to housing and related services for vulnerable residents.
The shelter at 66 Third St. will be purpose-built to meet the needs of clients and integrate into the surrounding community. Learn more about new shelter design.
The shelter program will be operated by Christie Ossington Neighbourhood Centre (CONC), a non-profit agency that has been providing essential supports for vulnerable community members since 1993. The site will be staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will provide critical shelter and wrap-around support services for approximately 50 seniors, helping them to gain stability and reduce social isolation.
Services will include:
Referrals to the program will be made through the City’s telephone-based Central Intake service.
The City is committed to working with the community to support the success of the site.
The City has hired Community Engagement Facilitator Public Progress to lead the community engagement process. This includes providing ongoing shelter updates, responding to questions and working collaboratively with the City and local community members to collectively problem-solve concerns that may arise.
The City has held a number of information sessions to share information about the shelter and enable community members to ask questions and share feedback.
The first session was a drop-in event, held on February 10. Answers to questions asked at the session, along with questions received via email, can be found in this Community Bulletin.
The City and Councillor Amber Morley held a Virtual Town Hall on April 15 to provide an update. View a copy of the presentation given at the event.