Ward 1’s Darren Hill shares concerns about new Sutherland shelter

Ward 1 Coun. Darren Hill is already getting calls from some of his constituents.

On Thursday, a former fire hall in Sutherland was named as the location for the first of two new 30-bed emergency homeless shelters for the city, which will be funded by the provincial government.

The building, located at 421 Central Avenue, sits in front of a skating rink and is bordered on three side by apartments and single family homes.

Hill said consultations should have begun before the decision on the location was made. He cited the recent consultations by the City of Red Deer as an example of what he thought was a “rigorous” process.

“All stakeholders – even the users of the shelters – were engaged in that process,” he said.

“They had conversations about where the emergency shelter should be located. That’s how they did their decision making. We didn’t do any of that.”

While Hill said Saskatoon sorely needs a new shelter, he noted that his other concern is that there don’t appear to be any wrap-around services offered at the new shelter.

“I would like to see counseling services, (the) ability to try to get people into housing. Where are the affordable housing initiatives from the provincial government to transition people from the homeless shelter into their own homes?” he asked.

James Gardiner, incoming CEO of The Mustard Seed, the organization which will manage the shelters, said that while the contracts are still being worked out, at this point the organization will only provide food and shelter.

Hill said he’s not sure if any lessons were learned after the opening of the Fairhaven emergency shelter, which saw both criminal and non-criminal calls to police rise significantly in the surrounding area.

“You’d think we would have learned something, but I haven’t seen any demonstration of that yet,” he added. “There should have been a complete community safety strategy in place before this announcement came.”

Hill said there haven’t been any community meetings announced yet, but they’ll likely happen in the next few weeks. He encouraged all local residents to attend.

“That’s the only way there’s going to be a proper safety and action plan put in place,” he said.

He also said residents should contact their MLAs and Social Services Minister Gene Makowsky to voice their opinions.