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"I've heard it described as hostile," Ward 27's Kristyn Wong-Tam told us late last year, characterizing the City of Toronto's troubled Seaton House as a facility structurally ill-equipped to meet its mandate. Dating back to the 1950s, the existing building was "never meant to house men with addiction and mental health issues," the Councillor explained, with many of Seaton House's residents living in cramped, poorly ventilated quarters.
Slated to close in 2017, Seaton House is set to be redeveloped into a 600,000 ft² multi-purpose facility including a 100-bed men's shelter, a 378-bed long-term home, and 130 units of assisted living, together with 21 affordable housing units with supports. Although the facility's various uses would be housed in separate parts of the building, a 4,000 m² 'community service hub' would serve as a central space, with the distinct programming "integrated in a comprehensively designed project." Unlike the current Seaton House, long-term housing will become the focus, with a relatively small proportion of the facility providing shelter space.
A central ground-level corridor running the length of the building will serve as the facility's spine, connecting the various programming via a central passageway. "In addition to indoor amenity space located throughout the building, outdoor amenity space is proposed: internal to the development in the form of courtyards; in gardens adjacent to the building exterior; and in various outdoor terraces and decks located throughout the building," the Staff Report notes.
Since a refined Staff Report outlining the redevelopment process was adopted by City Council in November, plans for the new facility are taking another step forward, with an Official Plan Amendment rezoning application for the site filed to the Toronto and East York Community Council this month.
Located at 315-349 George Street, the 4-storey, 634-bed Seaton House will be replaced by the new 9-storey facility, designed by Montgomery Sisam Architects in association with Hilditch Architect. The redevelopment also includes the revitalization of five abandoned heritage properties to the south of Seaton House, with the 2 and 3-storey structures at 295-311 George Street all designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act. These properties (three of which are set to be expropriated) include the former Fegan Boys Home at 295 George Street, which housed over three thousand British Home Children between 1884 and 1938, later becoming Toronto's first Goodwill store. In addition, one heritage property would be demolished.
As the largest homeless shelter in the city, Seaton House has at times housed as many as 900 beds, with overcapacity peaking during the 1980s. In recent years, the facility's shortcomings in meeting demand and adequately serving its users have continued to be publicized (although perhaps inadequately), with one morning in 2014 seeing two deaths—both of unnatural causes—within a single hour.
Unlike the existing structure, the new facility will be built specifically to provide long-term care for the homeless. According to Wong-Tam, this would be a first for Toronto. “There has never been a purpose-designed building, long-term care anyways, where your target audience is homeless people. Nobody has done this," the Councillor told CP24.
In this sense, the $350-550 million redevelopment plans come as welcome news, with the existing facility obviously falling short of serving the city's at-risk population. However, the redevelopment has also been strongly criticized for reducing the number of available beds, with the 100-bed shelter amounting to a significant reduction in available space. For the existing homeless population, being pushed out of the centrally located Seaton House shelter—which also provides a unique treatment program for severe alcohol dependancy—could hamper their access to essential services.
With the new facility scheduled to open in 2021, concerns have also been raised about the temporary spaces that will be provided while the new facility is under construction. However, Mayor Tory has assured the revitalization process will not leave existing residents without shelter, with the City set to implement a transition program involving the acquisition of two temporary shelter spaces. Meanwhile, the permanent acquisition of an additional four properties would make up for the shortfall in shelter space at the new facility. It is not yet known where the new properties will be located, meaning that the impact of potential displacement remains uncertain.
The future of Seaton House has long been a contentious topic in Toronto, with plans for the facility's redevelopment dating back well over a decade. While the general redevelopment plan—which has now evolved in greater detail—was approved by City Council as early as 2013, work is not expected to begin until the existing facility closes in 2017. By that point, the City has promised to have temporary shelters in place.
We will make sure to keep you updated as the redevelopment plans continue to take shape. In the meantime, more information is available on the City's official website, while a full copy of the recent community planning Staff Report is available here. A Community Consultation meeting will be held in the coming months, with a finalized report to be presented to the Community Council late this year. Want to share your thoughts on the subject? Feel free to leave a comment in the space below this page, or to join in the ongoing discussion on our associated Forum thread.
