Residents at Anita Place Tent City now have a place to get out of the cold, after a warming tent was constructed Thursday.
B.C. Housing’s Rajvir Rao said the tent was to have been ready by the end of the day, with power and heat to be provided later.
Modular washrooms, including one shower, are also on the site on St. Anne Avenue, just off Lougheed Highway in the downtown. However, they’re not yet operating.
As of Friday, there’s not yet any heat in the tent, though propane tanks have been installed.
Heat is expected in the tent soon.
“It’s going to make a huge difference,” said camp volunteer Chris Bossley.
“We’re waiting for B.C. Hydro. Everything is ready to go. As soon as B.C. Hydro provides service, we’ll be up running.”
One of the tents at the camp burned to the ground on Thursday morning. No one was injured and a cause is still being determined.
The City of Maple Ridge and Pivot Legal Society lawyers for the camp have reached an agreement to maintain safety standards at the camp, in return for the city suspending its injunction to clear it out. Maple Ridge Fire Rescue though still has concerns about safety at the camp.
B.C. Housing is continuing to look for a location for a shelter, or temporary modular housing that it can present to council, but so far nothing has been announced.
The Salvation Army Ridge Meadows Ministries is also operating an extreme weather shelter with space for 25 mats in the former location of the RainCity Housing shelter at 22239 Lougheed Hwy.
But during the first few nights when it opened in late December, only a few people were staying there.