Ottawa identifies two sites for tent-like temporarily housing for newcomers

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The city has identified two locations to build temporary tent-like structures called “tensile membrane structures” to house asylum seekers and newcomers on a temporary basis — one near the Nepean Sportsplex and the other near the Eagleson Park and Ride in Kanata.

“The city will purchase and construct semi-permanent structures for the purpose of establishing up to two newcomer reception centres, as needed, that could be operational by the end of 2025,” said a memo to councillors from Clara Freire, the city’s general manager of community and social services released Thursday.

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“These newcomer reception centres are intended to provide a more dignified option for newcomers who are currently sleeping on bunk beds in recreational facilities that have not been designed for human habitation.”

The next step will be advance planning applications and work with the NCC to obtain the necessary approvals for the location at 1645 Woodroffe Ave. in Nepean, according to the memo.

A zoning report for 40 Hearst Way in Kanata is expected to come before the planning and housing committee and city council in January.

Site plan applications for both sites are to be submitted in early 2025, and city staff expect building permit applications for the structures will be submitted by the end of March, and will then move through the procurement process.

Meanwhile, the city will be looking for a formal letter of commitment from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, said the memo. Work continues to transition single adult clients to the YMCA, and operationalize 1754 St. Joseph Blvd. as transitional housing.

The city also plans to buy up to 20 four to five-bedroom, homes scattered throughout the city to be used as transitional housing to support up to 200 people at a time.

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The update on locations for the structures is the latest news in a process that began in October 2023, when the city formed an emergency shelter task force to deal with what Mayor Mark Sutcliffe called an “unprecedented” demand for shelter beds.

“In the past two years, Ottawa has experienced an unprecedented inflow of asylum seekers and refugee claimants into the city,” said the memo. “For many of these individuals and families, the shelter system is the first place of refuge before finding more permanent housing options.”

The choice of sites was based on a number of considerations, including avaiable wastewater and water services at the site, environmental considerations and available transportation.

While immigration falls within the federal government’s jurisdiction, the city has been pursuing medium- to long-term housing options to respond to the demand for immediate and transitional housing and to alleviate pressure on the local shelter system resulting from this irregular migration, said Friere’s memo.

There are currently 330 beds at temporary emergency overflow centres, two of which are operating out of city-owned recreation facilities. About 600 single individuals staying in shelters are newcomers, which represents 60 per cent of shelter users.

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The structures — sometimes referred to by the trademarked name “Sprung Structures” — are temporary, all-weather structures similar to the one built at The Ottawa Hospital’s Civic campus emergency department during the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this year, some councillors argued that modular construction would be a better option because these buildings could continue to be used for other purposes.

However, the memo says tensile membrane structures cost around $15 per square foot up to $145 per square foot less than modular, depending on the type of modular construction utilized. A report commissioned by the city found that both building types could be built within around 12 months — but points out that a local modular project at 399-401 Bell St. South took two years to construct.

“The interior space of tensile membrane structures can be easily reconfigured in the future,” said the memo. “The interior space configuration for modular buildings needs to be determined in advance as interior layout is dependent on the size of the modules, unless using a combination of traditional and modular construction, which would increase project timelines. Both structure types can be disassembled and relocated; however, this would need to be factored in during [the] design of the modular building.”

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