Death of baby at Ottawa motel exposes gaps in city's response to homelessness

The death of an infant earlier this year at an Ottawa motelused as an emergency shelter has prompted questions and criticism abouthow the city supports its homeless population.

Paramedics responded to a call "for an infant with vital signs absent" at the Ottawa Inn on the morning of March 22. The infantwas later pronounced dead inhospital, according to a statement from Ottawa police.

Their sexual assault and child abuse unit isinvestigating.Police would not provide any further details.

The motel, located on Montreal Roadin Vanier, just east of the city's downtown, is one of 23 hotels, motels and post-secondary institutions that have agreements with the municipalityto house some of the city's people without homes.

The city-run program is meant toprovide temporary, stop-gap solutions for those in need of emergency shelter when its family shelters are at capacity.

However, nearly 21,000 people in Ottawa have been placed insuch off-site shelters since 2014, many staying for months, if not years at a time.

While there are still several unanswered questions surrounding the circumstances of the baby's death, the incident hasraised concerns about how safe off-site shelters are for those placed thereand about the quality ofsupportprovided by the city.

• Living in limbo in a temporary home

"There's been a number of incidents at motels and hotels, particularly where families are living for too long," said Rideau-Vanier Coun. Mathieu Fleury, who represents the ward where the Ottawa Inn is located.

He said clients are typically people who simply require financial assistance on the way to more permanent housing, but there are also those who have complex needs and would benefit from robust supportive services, whether that be for mental health or addiction.

In those casesthere should always be staff on-site, Fleury said,so that clientshave access to consistent and reliable help. Whatever services are available now are not enough, he said.

"I don't think it's fair for motel and hotel staff, but also for those families who have complex needs and need adequate supports," said Fleury.

"In this case, it's a tragedy."

City is 'shirking' responsibility

Nathalie Carrier, the executive director of the Quartier Vanier Business Improvement Area, said she was contacted by the owner of the Ottawa Innfollowing the incident. It was "quite traumatic" for staff working that day, she said,and they were in need of mental health support.

Carrier said Ottawa's homeless population and its local businesses need the city to step up.

• Families, newcomers seeking shelter now more than ever

"What we're seeing is an increasing level of responsibility being placed on private business owners to provide services that should be provided by the city," she said.

The local Tim Hortonsis often used as a public washroom orinjection site, she said. In the case of the Ottawa Inn, it's now partiallyserving as a family shelter.

None of this should fall on local businesses, she said,"nor are they and their staff equipped to provide the services required in some of these most traumatic cases."

"These are responsibilities that the city should be taking in hand and yet [it] seems to be shirking a certain level of responsibility to the clients that they serve and the people that are most vulnerable on our streets."

City staff see more peoplewith'complex needs'

Mathieu Mault, the president of the company that owns the Ottawa Inn, declined to do an interviewciting client confidentiality, but sent an emailed statement to CBC saying "anyincident at the Ottawa Inn is treated seriously andevaluated through aninternal review."

"As we host clients that havecomplexneeds, wecontinuouslyreview our security protocols to ensure that thehealth andsafety of all clients and staff is paramount."

In response to a question from Fleuryabout supportavailable to people in off-site shelters, the city saidanyone who enters Ottawa's shelter system is assigned a caseworker that provides social support.

Those workers "make reasonable attempts to meet households biweekly," the city said,adding that the pandemic temporarilylimited those in-person check-ins and accessing them is voluntary.

"Households are presenting with more complex needs and would benefit from additional case management resources," the city said. As a result, it's workingwith community partners to deliver more intensive supports and create more social service positions.

Mault said the Ottawa Inn is exploring ways to further support clients , including a space for socializing, meal preparation and skill development.

"Unfortunately,theCity ofOttawahas nofundingforsuchon-sitesupport initiatives. We are turning towardscommunity partners and seeking grants to fundthe development of thisnewspace," his statement read.

In a response to questions from CBC, the city said Ottawa police and the Children's Aid Society are investigating the incident.

"As such, it is not within the city's purview to investigate or make findings on this particular incident," the written statement said.

"The city is, however, reviewing its internal processes and services to ensure households are well supported when in need of shelter services."