The immediate impact of the 26 new women's emergency housing beds in the Downtown Eastside is aleady being felt. The number of recorded "turnaways" (requests for service we cannot meet because of lack of space) at our main Powell Street women's facility droppped by 50% in December, the month after the opening.

The new facility, up the road at 625 Powell Street, was full within days of  its opening at the end of November, but these preliminary numbers suggest we're much closer to being able to meet demand. We'll keep tracking the trend over the next few months and post results.

In the meantime, here's a new profile of one of our staff published in a government e-magazine.