The Town of Okotoks says it doesn’t track how many people use public warming spaces during extreme cold, but it hasn’t seen a need to make them accessible 24 hours a day.
During the recent cold snap, with temperatures plunging below –30C, the Town advised residents that the Okotoks Recreation Centre and Centennial Arenas could be used as warming spaces during regular operating hours.
While the need for 24-hour access to warming centres hasn’t been identified here, the Town is keeping an eye on it, said Sian Anderson, community wellness team lead in Okotoks.
“That is something that we will continuously evaluate,” Anderson said.
In Airdrie, which like Okotoks does not have shelter space, the public library stayed open 24 hours a day to provide a place to go during extremely cold weather.
With temperatures remaining below –15, the warming spaces in Okotoks are still in effect, Anderson said.
To make the warming spaces welcoming and accessible, the Town doesn't record the number of people who access them.
“We don't have any utilization rates attached to it,” she said. “Those spaces are welcoming and accessible for everyone here, no matter why they're using them.
"We didn't want to put people in a position where, to get warm, you have to also let someone know that you need to get warm.”
When the warming spaces were announced, the Town advised residents that the Okotoks Family Resource Centre could provide additional support.
The Family Resource Centre works with people on a case-by-case basis and is not an after-hours service, she said.
The needs of every person vary if they are facing homelessness, and an individual can get help discussing their options, Anderson said.
“Do they have family or friends, do they need temporary housing, is a shelter in Calgary, for example, the best option for them?
“They'll talk through those different scenarios. It is a very individualized, case-by-case type of response.”
Despite there not being a highly visible unhoused population in Okotoks, the Town has anecdotal evidence of people who are unhoused or in danger of losing their homes, she said.
Various service providers have expressed interest in gathering data, she said.
Anderson said that as far as she knows, this was the first time that warming spaces were implemented in Okotoks. Although the Town is working on establishing guidelines, there isn’t a specific threshold for how cold it needs to be before the Town let’s people know they are available.
“We are currently looking at it,” she said. “We'll do some more longer-term planning around what those thresholds are.”
