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The number of people turned away from the mission’s shelter on East Hastings Street this past winter was less than a third of the annual number from each of the previous three winters, Hunka said.

Photo by NICK PROCAYLO / PNG

Between last October and February, the mission turned away 164 people from its shelter, which includes 72 beds and 20 overflow spaces. The year before, they logged 540 “turn-aways” over the same time, according to numbers provided by Hunka, and the average over the previous three years works out to 560 per winter. Hunka said there are a number of reasons that people might be referred to another shelter — people with pets, for example, aren’t allowed at the UGM shelter — but most turn-aways are because the shelter is at capacity.

“The trend we’re seeing is so notable, it looks so positive … To be clear, we’re still full, we’re still busy, but the number of turn-aways is way down,” Hunka said. “We’re not necessarily expecting that the numbers will drop (in this year’s homeless count), but there is at least a glimmer of hope.”

Hunka and his colleagues at UGM “absolutely believe” the biggest reason for this trend is Vancouver’s modular-housing program.

Since its launch in September 2017, Vancouver’s modular-housing program has seen the construction of 606 prefabricated homes with support services at 10 sites around town, the last of which started filling up with new tenants last week. The program was made possible with funding from the B.C. NDP government and the support of Vancouver’s previous mayor and council.