FAQs
How they operate
Why is the City building reception centres for migrants and asylum seekers?
The City of Ottawa is building reception centres to respond to the significant increase in asylum claimants to our city, including asylum seekers and migrants also known as refugee claimants, or migrants. There are currently around 600 single adult asylum claimants in the shelter system. This accounts for 60 per cent of clients, placing considerable strain on resources.
Asylum claimants are currently staying in recreation and community centres, including on arena floors or in bleachers, or sleeping overnight in shelters.
Dedicated reception centres will provide asylum claimants with a more comfortable and dignified welcome to our city. This includes extensive on-site services to help them transition into more permanent housing. Supporting asylum claimants at reception centres will also return recreation and community centres back to the community.
Who will be using the centres?
The centres will house and support asylum claimants, also known as refugee claimants, or migrants, resettling in Ottawa. Up to two centres will have a combined capacity of 300 single adult asylum claimants.
How long will people live in them?
Clients will stay at the centres for up to 90 days. If permanent housing has not been secured by then, they will move to transitional housing facilities or smaller reception homes across Ottawa.
Why is this only for asylum claimants?
The journey of resettling in a new country is complex and poses unique challenges, particularly for those fleeing violence and hardships.
Newcomers benefit significantly from tailored resettlement services. By offering these services on-site, we can better support a asylum claimant’s transition to life in Ottawa.
This approach also relieves pressure on the emergency shelter system, creating more space for all clients in need of shelter and social services.
Once centres are no longer needed, will you be turning them into homeless shelters?
There are no plans to convert reception centres into homeless shelters or emergency overflow centres. The structures are being purpose built in response to significant pressure on the existing shelter system that currently sees asylum claimants making up 60 per cent of clients.
Any future considerations on adapting the structures for alternate uses would involve community discussion and engagement.
What happens if it takes longer than 90 days for an asylum claimant to get settled and find permanent housing?
The newcomer reception centres are just the first step in an asylum claimant’s journey after they arrive in Ottawa. The City is establishing a comprehensive reception system that will allow asylum claimants to move into transitional housing following the 90-day timeframe.
It’s also important to note that settlement agencies will follow asylum claimants throughout their journey to ensure they receive the support they need.
How they’re built
Why is the City using temporary structures instead of permanent buildings?
The City, with input from third-party experts, evaluated multiple options and considered factors such as cost, construction speed, and effectiveness. Based on this analysis, tensile membrane structures were recommended as the best solution.
These structures offer customizable interiors with features like windows, corridors, and vestibules to meet the needs of asylum claimants and service providers.
Most critically, they can be built quickly to relieve pressure on shelters and allow recreation centres to be returned to normal use.
Tensile membrane structures can also be repurposed for a variety of future uses.
Other building types, such as mass timber and modular construction, were also considered. These options were not selected for reasons including cost, design flexibility and construction timelines.
Why are we housing asylum claimants in tents instead of brick and mortar buildings?
Tensile membrane structures are not tents. They are fully customizable, durable structures similar to existing conventional buildings and include features such as heating, cooling, kitchen amenities, and other supports. These structures have been used successfully by hospitals and schools in our community.
Where they're located
Why aren’t the facilities in areas with better access to services?
The centres will provide extensive on-site services to meet the settlement needs of asylum claimants.
The centres will offer services to effectively transition into our community – including employment, interpretation and translation services; individualized case management for work permits, status hearings and benefits; trauma support; and more.
These services will be delivered by experienced settlement agencies involved in the project’s planning and design.
How did the City choose the locations for the centres?
The City began with over 90 potential locations and narrowed the list to two based on engineering, construction needs, transit access, and walkability. Sites were excluded if they were too small or located near heavy industrial areas, power lines or sensitive environmental areas, among other reasons.
Additional details about this process were provided to members of City Council on November 7.
Will a reception centre be built in Kanata?
A secondary site at 40 Hearst Way, across from Eagleson Park and Ride, has been identified as a preferred location for a reception centre.
It’s important to note that this site would only be built if demand is expected to exceed capacity at the Nepean location and if funding is secured through the federal government.
How we got here
- 1645 Woodroffe Avenue (on federal lands next to the Confederation Education Centre)
- 40 Hearst Way (on part of the Eagleson Park and Ride in Kanata)
How did the City select the locations for the reception centres?
Following direction from City Council, City staff began reviewing potential sites that could accommodate a future reception centre at the beginning of 2024. They conducted an extensive review of over 90 locations.
The City considered factors such as engineering, construction needs, transit access, and walkability to narrow the search. Once the shortlist was developed, it was shared with an independent engineering consultant for further analysis.
After their review and preliminary feasibility assessment, the consultant concluded the following two sites were best suited to host a newcomer reception centre:
Additional details about the site selection process were provided to members of Council in a memo on November 7, 2024.
How did the City decide on the type of structure for the reception centres?
In response to the urgent need for more shelter and support services for newcomers, on November 23, 2023, Council unanimously approved a motion directing City staff to “actively pursue the option of a Sprung Structure, or other semi-permanent facility.”
Starting in 2024, City staff, with input from third-party experts, evaluated several options to determine the best type of structure for the newcomer reception centres. They considered many factors such as cost, construction speed, and effectiveness. Based on this analysis, tensile membrane structures were recommended as the best solution.
What are tensile membrane structures?
Tensile membrane structures offer customizable interiors with features like windows, corridors, and vestibules to meet the needs of refugee claimants and service providers. They include amenities similar to conventional buildings, such as heating, cooling, and access to showering, laundry and washroom facilities, that will allow occupants to live comfortably.
They can be built quickly to relieve pressure on shelters and allow recreation centres to be returned to normal use. They can also be repurposed for a variety of future uses.
Were other building types considered aside from tensile membrane structures?
Other building types, such as mass timber and modular construction, were also considered. These options were not selected for reasons including cost, design flexibility and construction timelines.
Other
716 new housing options.
106 new affordable and supportive housing units.
610 new housing benefits.
Could the City try other options instead?
Reception centres are not the only solution that the City is pursuing to provide temporary shelter for asylum claimants.
The centres are part of a broader strategy that includes using brick and mortar buildings as transitional housing. This includes the Taggart Family YMCA and a former nunnery at 1754 St. Joseph Blvd. The City also plans to buy up to 20 four-to-five-bedroom homes across Ottawa to be used as transitional housing.
This plan was developed in close collaboration with settlement agencies and service providers to ensure it meets the needs of asylum claimants.
When will they open?
The centres could open by the end of 2025. We will continue to provide updates as this project progresses.
Why isn’t the City building more permanent housing?
The City is actively working to build new affordable housing to help all residents find a home that suits their needs.
In 2023 alone, the City of Ottawa helped build or deliver:
Another 831 affordable and supportive housing units were under construction and an additional 849 were in the pre-development stage.
How will this project be paid for?
For over a year, the City has been in discussions with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada for federal funding to create a permanent and sustainable newcomer reception system in Ottawa.
The City will request formal commitment for funding for the Newcomer Reception System once the final sites and building plans are confirmed
Does the City contribute any municipal tax dollars to the reception centres?
Establishing the reception centres is a response to irregular migration, which is a federal issue. No municipal tax dollars will be used to support the construction of the centres.
Staff have been in discussions with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada regarding funding over the past year. A formal request for commitment of funding for the Newcomer Reception System has been submitted.
The centres are part of a broader strategy that includes using brick and mortar buildings as transitional housing. This includes the Taggart Family YMCA and a former nunnery at 1754 St. Joseph Blvd. The City also plans to buy up to 20 four-to-five-bedroom homes across Ottawa to be used as transitional housing.
The funding request will be updated as our plans are finalized.
The full system proposal will not move forward if the City is unable to secure funding from the federal government.
How will you manage the impact on local services, such as schools, that are already stretched thin?
Asylum claimants being supported in the reception centres will be women and men over 18 years old, including singles, couples or adult relatives.
This is not a permanent solution. The reception centres are an entry point into the newcomer system, in which asylum claimants will stay for up to 90 days.
Asylum claimants have unique needs, and the reception centres will have resettlement services available that will help them get started off on the right foot. There will be employment resources, language training, trauma support, and other on-site resettlement services.
Are asylum claimants screened when they arrive in Ottawa?
An asylum claimant is someone who is seeking refugee protection (asylum) in Canada. A person can claim asylum at a port of entry or at an inland office if they have already entered Canada.
Asylum claimants arrive in our country through these channels that are managed by the federal government. These federal agencies conduct an initial screening of all asylum claimants which includes security.
Is the City holding public consultations so that my voice can be heard on this project?
Public information sessions for the proposed locations are being organized.
The first session is planned for Wednesday, December 4 at 6 pm in Halls A and B of the Nepean Sportsplex, 1701 Woodroffe Avenue. This session is specific to the site planned for Nepean and will provide residents an opportunity to meet, converse and ask questions of various subject matter experts.
Residents can also provide their feedback on EngageOttawa.
An information session for the site in Kanata is being planned for some time in the new year.
How can I weigh in on this project?
Residents can participate in public consultations during the site plan application process for the Nepean site. Additional consultations will be held for the Kanata site if construction at that location is needed.