While Union Street may not be the best possible site for a low-cost housing complex for single men, today’s story reporting that the development is going ahead will be welcome news for the men facing eviction from the Canadian Hotel.

Putting people out on the street when they have nowhere to go against making a building safe for them is a no-win proposition. Canadian Hotel landlord Edward Powell needs to install a fire protection system — not a sprinkler system, as previously reported here — as soon as possible.

But this should not mean that the people living in the building should be out on the street. The building planned for Union Street is a long-term solution. In the meantime, a safe short-term answer must still be found.