Toronto will add up to 1,533 winter shelter spaces

Toronto will open up to 1,533 extra shelter and housing spaces from November 15 to April 15, 2027, 18% more than last year, the City said. The City now shelters nearly 7,000 people a night, down from 9,000 a year ago. Even so, it says a homelessness emergency continues, driven by unaffordable housing, insufficient income supports and unmet health needs.

Up to 588 of the spaces are permanent supportive and subsidized units, and about 505 are new shelter and 24-hour winter respite spaces. The rest open only when it is cold. Warming centres, 254 spaces at five sites, open at -5C or during winter weather event warnings. About 186 surge spaces open at -15C, and in extreme cold the City will also send extra street outreach teams to urge people indoors.

For context, a Financial Accountability Office of Ontario report, cited by the City, found homelessness rose 17.9% across Ontario from 2022 to 2025 but fell 8.2% in Toronto. But the City says progress is at risk without stable funding agreements between all three orders of government.

Sources: City of Toronto