The Florence Booth House Redevelopment project involved tearing down the existing structure — while preserving the historical facade facing Tecumseth St — and rebuilding a purpose-designed emergency shelter on the same site. 

Florence Booth House has been an integral part of the Queen West Community for the past 25 years offering shelter and support to women in Toronto. This redevelopment will allow us to expand and enhance our services in meaningful ways: the new building will be fully accessible, featuring an elevator, wheelchair-accessible rooms and washrooms, and a dedicated clinic space to support the physical and mental health needs of our clients. 

Once complete, the new Florence Booth House will offer 63 emergency shelter beds, continuing our mission to support some of the city's most vulnerable women in a community that we are proud to serve in and is conducive to transformational change. 

When Florence Booth House opened in 2000, it was intended to be a temporary shelter location. The 100-year-old building at 723 Queen St West underwent minor renovations to be adapted for short-term use. However, the need for shelter beds continues to increase, and our presence in the Queen West neighbourhood has proven to be transformative for the women we serve and is deeply needed in this central location. 

Unfortunately, the existing building no longer meets the needs of the population we serve. It lacks accessibility for women with mobility challenges and uses a dormitory-style layout that doesn’t provide privacy or dignity. As a result, women who are older, use assistive devices, or have specific physical needs have been unable to access our support. 

The women we serve deserve more. They deserve a space that reflects their worth—a space that is safe, private, inclusive, and fully accessible. A simple renovation could not meet these goals. Rebuilding from the ground up allows us to design a shelter that truly reflects our mission, offering compassion, dignity, and hope for all who walk through our doors. 

The Salvation Army has been part of the life of Queen Street West and Tecumseth for over a hundred years. This location has served in many capacities; such as a church for many years, an addictions centre, then an emergency shelter. Florence Booth House opened in February 2000 as a temporary women’s emergency shelter to address an urgent need. While originally not intended as a permanent location, the growing demand for shelter beds particularly for women, made it a vital part of Toronto’s emergency shelter system. Florence Booth House has since become known for serving some of the city's most vulnerable women. 

Its downtown location provides access to essential social, health, and addiction supports, making it an ideal place to continue serving women experiencing homelessness in a compassionate and accessible way. Florence Booth House has always received a warm response from the Queen West community. We are grateful for the community members who regularly walk in to donate items, host fundraisers, and the annual Christmas BBQ, hot chocolate and singing on Queen West. Florence Booth House has been woven into the fabric of the Queen West Community, and we look forward to continuing to do so for many years to come. 

An initial virtual community meeting was held on November 24, 2020. Meeting minutes and additional information are available on our website. The project has always been in collaboration with the City of Toronto Shelter Support and Services (TSSS) and The Salvation Army. 

We are committed to minimizing disruption as much as possible, we recognize that many people work and live in this area. Construction will always follow the City of Toronto’s noise bylaws, as outlined in Chapter 591 of the Toronto Municipal Code. We do not expect any major noise during this initial phase and will update the FAQ should noise levels change when exterior demolition begins. Even at that point, we will always abide by the City bylaws.

Due to the dormitory-style layout of the current Florence Booth House building and the additional health and safety concerns brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, our emergency shelter services were temporarily relocated to 66 Norfinch Drive. We will continue to use this location during construction.  

All supports—such as emergency shelter beds, meals, case management, housing assistance, harm reduction, and chaplaincy—remain available at our Norfinch location. We are grateful to be able to use this space temporarily, and we are committed to maintaining the same level of compassionate service throughout the redevelopment process as we look forward to returning to our new, transformational space once construction is complete. 

The project is being funded by generous donors after a very successful Capital Campaign, The Salvation Army (THQ). If you would like to donate, you can do so securely online.

Updates will always be reflected here on the website. We will also provide quarterly newsletter updates—if you would like to be added to the email list, please send us an email! We believe the more involvement and support from our community, the more successful our program will be.

Please use the contact form or email us at fbh.redevelopment@salvationarmy.ca. This inbox is monitored regularly, and we aim to respond within 24 hours. 

Thank you! Florence Booth House is stronger because of our community’s support! 

We are always in need of women’s clothing, hygiene essentials, and new pyjamas. Monetary donations can also be made through our website—every little bit makes a difference!

Once the new building opens, we look forward to having volunteers bring support and joy to our programming again. A strong community is built together, we would not be able to serve the women we do without support from our community.