Trailers to be removed on case-by-case basis from the Guertin site to make room for new projects

Taylor Clark

The pressure is on while Gatineau reconfigures the Guertin site to make way for new projects like the Village Transition. This comes at a time when the city has claimed leadership in tackling homelessness.

“The work that’s being done, and will continue to be done by the teams, is really about support, because we don’t want to weaken people who are already vulnerable,” said Mayor Maude Marquis-Bissonnette. “It’s really a case-by-case dialogue, and then seeing how we’re able to support people.”

The former home to the Gatineau Olympiques made the list of demolitions in late February due to its “significant level of deterioration.” A $2.1 million contract for the deconstruction of the arena was awarded in June and it was expected to take at least a year.

The deconstruction of the Robert-Guertin Centre would allow for undertakings like social housing on rue de Carillon, Gîte Ami’s Mon Calme project, and Village Transition to take shape.

The temporary and transitional village solution came as a second phase in a homelessness solution from Devcore after the company provided 48 heated tents to the arena parking lot last winter. The village would take the shape of 60 shipping containers managed by Transition Québec and house up to 100 people for a transitional period of two to five years as they seek permanent accommodation.

But to house more than 50 containers, trailers that currently reside on the Guertin site will have to be reorganized and some may be removed, said Marquis-Bissonnette.

“We don’t want to remove them all, because in fact, what we’re dealing with at the moment, is the transition. It’s the transition between before and after the arrival of the Transition Québec site.”

Over the last year, trailers have arrived on the grounds of the Robert-Guertin Centre. Marquis-Bissonnette said their numbers have increased over the months. According to the City’s data, 70 per cent of those residing in the trailers would like to integrate into one of the containers.

“The idea is not to weaken them until they can integrate into a Transition Québec container. When I say “weaken”, I mean turn them around in a timely manner because the reality is that a trailer is still an improvement in conditions for people experiencing homelessness compared to a tent. But some trailers are going to have to be removed because we're going to need space to do these jobs.”

Marquis-Bissonnette said the removal of the trailers would be on a case-by-case basis but the mobile homes facing advanced dilapidation would not make the cut.

“The idea is to get people to move with us and then bring them into a continuum of service that meets their needs … Ultimately, these projects on the Guertin site will help improve quality of life and offer services, so they're essential.”