The Salvation Army Windsor Centre of Hope is temporarily expanding its facilities to provide space for more men, along with couples and pets.
The centre has only served men, but due to increasing demands for safe and accessible shelter, the organization is widening its services to ensure no one is turned away due to their circumstances.
The temporary move will result in the men's shelter adding 20 more emergency shelter spaces to help more single men escape the cold.
Executive Director Jason Linton says they now have 52 emergency shelter beds.
"This has been proven to be critical as we move through the winter months," he says. "We've been at capacity or close to capacity most nights, and we anticipate the same as we move through March."
There will also be a couple-friendly shelter that will provide private, shared spaces, allowing couples to remain together during times of crisis.
Linton says typically when couples come into the shelter system, they're separated.
"We question if that, in a time of crisis that they're experiencing, is that the most constructive approach for anyone? So allowing them to come together and stay together positions them well to work through their efforts to find affordable housing through the assistance of our housing support workers," he says.
The shelter will also now offer pet-friendly spaces to let people stay with their animals during difficult times.
Linton says they're testing the waters in terms of allowing people to stay with their pets.
"We've opened up single rooms for men with pets. Many who come into the shelter have to give up their pets, and that can be incredibly heartbreaking for people. We've opened this up on a trial basis to see, in effect, the need," he says.
The temporary expansion is currently scheduled to run through the end of March.
The centre is located at 355 Church St. in Windsor.