Encampment structures in Montreal raise safety concerns, but options are running out as winter nears

The city of Montreal says it's starting to see more and more structures like these popping up at homeless encampments. People experiencing homelessness are trying to find ways to stay in these places for the winter, sometimes equipping them with solar panels or generators. And it's got some officials and organizations concerned about safety. Jocelyn Montard is building this structure in the Steinberg Forest in Montreal's Hochelaga-Maisonneuve neighborhood. He spent years in a tent but says he wants a bigger and warmer space. He says he's stayed in shelters before and didn't feel safe. I got some bad issue in some shelter. The kind of place you can find a lot of darkness. The city of Montreal worries that some of these structures aren't suitable to live in. It says makeshift heating systems are a fire risk. It says the fire department is often called to look at these structures and sometimes has no choice but to take them down. We can't accept permanent spaces that are not safe. The Old Brewery Mission says these makeshift cabins are a sign of how homelessness is evolving in Montreal. It says people are running out of options as shelters fill up and wait lists for social housing are getting longer. A shelter is not a place for people who are in camps. These are people who have a capacity to organize themselves. They can live in housing. Let's give them housing. Let's nip this in the bud and let's address it in a far more economically viable way, and that is identify, build affordable housing. The city of Montreal says it plans to address that issue at the upcoming homelessness summit and figure out a plan with the provincial government. Montard says he hopes to have a permanent home one day, but until that becomes a reality, this structure is the closest he can get.