Sudbury is a Hilton for the homeless, says city councillor

Homeless visitors from outside Sudbury are driving up the cost of city homeless shelters.

Municipal taff toldGreather Sudbury CityCouncillast night that people from Manitoulin Island and other areas take up beds at shelters.

But those beds arepaid for entirely by Sudbury taxpayers.

Councillor Joscelyne Landry-Altmann said the city has become the "homeless Hilton" for northern Ontarios homeless population.

"If (homeless people from) other municipalities are coming to Sudbury and taking up the beds that Sudburians are paying for, I think it's very fair we should be requesting some kind of contribution," she said.

Sudbury shelter beds cost more

Landry-Altmann said this is likely one of the reasons why homeless shelter beds cost more in Sudbury than other cities.

She said in Hamilton, taxpayers pay $16 per bed, while here, it's $58.

The councillors comments were made as the citys budget committee reviewed the Emergency Shelter Services request for about $300,000 of operational "top-up" funding. The Emergency Shelter Program has been receiving one-time funding since 2006 to support the Women and Families Program, Mens Program and Youth Programs in the city.

Landry-Altmanns ideas about cost sharing with other municipalities have yet to be discussed.