St. James's interim women-only emergency shelter beds consistenly full during cold winter

All 26 beds at the St. James Community Service Society's interim women-only emergency shelter beds at 329 Powell Street -- which opened the week of Nov. 28, 2011 -- have been full during the current cold winter.

Funded by the Province of BC, the new low-barrier beds provide additional safe, secure space for women in the Downtown Eastside community. The shelter is open 24/7 and provides meals as well as access to support services.

The location is an interim space to address immediate needs until a more permanent location for additional beds can be identified by the Province. "We're very pleased to be able to offer 26 additional women's shelter beds this winter while we finalize plans for the renovation of our Powell Place shelter to double its permanent capacity to 52 beds," said Jonathan Oldman, executive director of St. James Community Service Society when the facility opened.

Read the full news release.

Read the BC Housing news release.

OCTOBER 2011 -- St. James selected to develop, manage and operate affordable housing at former Remand Centre

St. James Community Service Society has been selected by BC Housing to develop, manage and operate an innovative project at Vancouver's former Remand Centre.

The project involves creating 95 units of affordable housing at 211 Gore Ave. in Vancouver, including 37 units of supported housing through the Bladerunners program. The development is expected to be completed by mid-2013.

Learn More.

JULY 2011 -- St. James Community Service Society mural celebrates 50 years

Improving the lives of vulnerable people in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside is what St. James Community Service Society is about and has been about for half a century. In keeping with this goal, SJCSS is proud to unveil, at the Powell Street Festival, a mural by Vancouver artists Joey Mallett and Rita Buchwitz.

Read more.

A revised development permit application for the building was submitted to the City of Vancouver in April 2011. For more information, please visit the project's information webpage, or the City's development website.