WHITNEY PIER, N.S. — A plan to locate 30 single-unit pallet shelters for the homeless in the Cape Breton community of Whitney Pier has some residents concerned.

Lorne Green, who represents Whitney Pier on Cape Breton Regional Municipal Council, says he’s received hundreds of emails and texts from area residents.

Green says there has been no consultation with locals, many of whom question how their neighbourhood will change once the province installs the 30 shelters.

He says his constituents fear a rise in drug use and violence in the area after the province builds what it has called a “village” of shelters constructed with access to electricity, washrooms, laundry and on-site support.

Green says concerned residents are gathering on Tuesday to prepare for a meeting with the Department of Community Services, a date for which hasn’t been set yet.

The province announced in October that it was spending $7.5 million to buy 200 shelters produced by Pallet, an American shelter provider, with 100 to be erected in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 22, 2024.

The Canadian Press