Saskatoon emergency shelter will not proceed at proposed site
The City of Saskatoon has announced the proposed emergency shelter in the former Sutherland fire hall will not proceed, following a city council motion to limit the criteria for site selection.
According to the city, the council endorsed a motion requiring shelter spaces to be at least 250 metres from a public or catholic elementary school.
The move comes after an outcry from Sutherland residents, including parents whose children attend Bishop Filevich Elementary School, located just down the street from the fire hall where the 30-bed shelter was slated to open.
The shelter is part of a Saskatchewan government plan announced in October 2023 to alleviate the homelessness crisis, which includes 60 new emergency shelter spaces and 15 complex needs shelter spaces for Saskatoon.
The province is funding the shelters, but asked the city to choose the locations. Alberta-based non-profit Mustard Seed has been tapped to operate the facility, which now finds itself without a home.
“The city will continue to support the Government of Saskatchewan in its provincial approach to homelessness through identifying sites for two new locations, each having approximately 30 shelter beds,” the city said in a release late Wednesday.
The city said the postponed public meetings rescheduled for March 11 and 12 will be cancelled and the administration will seek alternate sites that meet the new criteria.
On Monday, City Councillor Zach Jeffries announced his plans for the motion to nix the fire hall location.
“I believe this motion will help provide more certainty and clarity in the community about future shelters and how they can best be located. If the motion passes, it would end consideration of the former Fire Hall Number 5 as a location for a shelter and ensure that different sites can be looked at that take into account these separation distances,” Jeffries wrote in a post online.
-With files from Rory MacLean
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Prime minister faces mounting pressure to step aside from inside caucus
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will face mounting pressure from his caucus this week to step down from the leadership of the Liberal party.
Bloc won't hold Liberals 'hostage' over seniors' benefits: cabinet minister
Liberal cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault says the Liberals will not be 'held hostage' by the Bloc Quebecois' demand to expand Old Age Security to more seniors.
Police identify Toronto victim of alleged serial killer
Toronto police have identified the woman who was allegedly killed by a suspected serial killer earlier this month.
Missing father, kids spotted in New Zealand wilderness 3 years after disappearance: police
A New Zealand man who disappeared with his three children in 2021 was spotted on a farm along the country's northwest coast, police say.
No jail time for man who fatally stabbed senior in Vancouver
A man who stabbed a senior to death in Vancouver's Biltmore Hotel building in 2020 has been given a conditional sentence for the killing, meaning he will not serve any jail time if he remains on good behaviour in the community.
B.C. billionaire posts third large sign criticizing NDP ahead of the election
British Columbia billionaire Chip Wilson has put up yet another billboard message to voters, his third post outside his multimillion-dollar mansion in NDP Leader David Eby's own riding.
Great white shark washes up on B.C. shore
In a rare occurrence, a bona fide great white shark washed up on a B.C. beach Thursday.
EXCLUSIVE: 'We were privileged to be friends with our sister': Family mourns murdered N.S. woman
More than a month after the murder of Nova Scotia woman Esther Jones, her family continues to grapple with the loss.
Job growth numbers 'good news' in Canada but there are concerns, according to an economist
An economist says the latest job growth numbers in Canada are 'good news,' but he has concerns following Statistic Canada's report.