The Saskatoon Tribal Council (STC) Chief Mark Arcand has criticized the city’s plan to establish a new homeless shelter at a downtown location on Pacific Avenue, which is a former transit depot. The proposed shelter, funded with $250,000 from the province, will offer 30 beds, a figure Arcand questions for its impact on the city’s larger homelessness issue. He argues that the focus should be on expanding existing services, like the emergency wellness center and other established programs, rather than introducing a new facility that might lead to reductions in funding for current shelters.
Arcand is also concerned that the new shelter’s opening could lead to cuts at the STC’s Fairhaven shelter, which serves up to 200 people nightly. The provincial Ministry of Social Services has indicated plans to decrease capacity at the STC’s wellness center in favor of smaller shelters, contradicting a previous commitment to add 60 new spaces in Saskatoon. Arcand also questions the decision to use the Alberta-based Mustard Seed for operation rather than a local organization familiar with the cultural needs of Indigenous people, who make up a significant portion of the city’s homeless population.
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