Reduced hours at The Lighthouse’s stabilization unit hurt Saskatoon, says police Chief Clive Weighill.
“Now, to have the doors close in the daytime, it’s going to put more people back on the streets downtown,” he said. “This is a setback for the city.”
The Lighthouse recently trimmed operating hours at its stabilization unit due to funding cutbacks, according to the charity’s Twitter account.
The unit provides shelter to people who are under the influence of drugs and alcohol but who don’t need medical attention, and now operates only from 4 p.m. to 8 a.m. The shelter was previously open 24 hours a day.
Weighill said the unit is better suited than police cells for some people on the streets.
“I mean these are the most needy people in our society,” he said. “They have to have some place that they can go to during the daytime.”
The number of beds in the stabilization unit increased to 38 from 20 last November as part of a $4-million project.
