London’s Service Depots to close mid-winter [Video]

The future provision of basic needs to Londoners living in homeless encampments was thrown into doubt after a marathon debate by council’s Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee (SPPC).

Service Depots are temporarily set up each day near encampments to offer a sandwich, water, and location for sanitation/bathroom stations.

On Tuesday, members of SPPC spent hours debating a staff report that incorporated council-approved criteria to map out viable sites where new Service Depots could be considered.

The vast majority of the locations were in east London.

“The concentration that we saw in this report, it’s quite frankly unacceptable,” said Coun. Hadleigh McAlister, who represents Ward 1 along Hamilton Road.

McAlister put forward a motion to “take no further action” on the staff report.

City staff emphasized that the motion would end the operation of existing Service Depots on Jan. 1, 2025.

Coun, Steve Lehman seconded the motion, “I would love to …