Saskatoon psychologist concerned about proposed new shelter near children's clinic

A proposed emergency shelter at the old bus depot in downtown Saskatoon is causing alarm at a nearby children's mental health clinic.

In March, the city ruled that a new shelter must be located at least 250 metres from any elementary school. A new 30-bed shelter at an old fire hall in the Sutherland neighbourhood was rejected by city council in February due to its proximity to a school.

Dr. Jocelyn Poock, a clinical psychologist whose clinic is adjacent to the proposed shelter site, says she is concerned that the newly proposed shelter would be near her children's clinic in Saskatoon's downtown.

She said her clinic gets 7,000 visits a year from vulnerable children, including those with autism, serious trauma, impulsive behavioursand other disabilities.

"We have to get kids safely in the doors to do our job as clinicians. If children don't feel safe coming into our building, we can't exact any change in their lives," she said. "You need that sense of physical safety, whether it's perceived safety or actual safety, to help somebody move through a trauma process."

WATCH | Child psychologist concerned about having a shelter as a neighbour:

Proposed Saskatoon shelter site alarming for nearby childrens clinic

2 months ago

Duration 2:27

Child psychologist Jocelyn Poock is worried a proposed emergency shelter in downtown Saskatoon could threaten her patients sense of safety.

Poock expressed disbelief at thepotential location for the shelter.

"I can't imagine, and I don't want to imagine, any of the outcomes that could come from placing two very vulnerable populations 40 feet away from each other," she said.

"I don't want to see anybody go homeless in, in the winter in Saskatoon. I can't imagine. But my the message that we are trying to convey is that we are here to help children and families whose who have different level of vulnerability because they have things like autism, because they have intellectual disabilities. These are not kids who will understand that they can't pick up something off the street, and they won't understand that they can't maybe walk a certain path to the clinic."

CBC asked the City of Saskatoon about Poock's concerns. It provided a statement from city manager Jeff Jorgenson.

"This is different from a school in that the business' functions are entirely indoors. Whereas, a school has kids walking to school and there are extensive outdoor activities," Jorgenson said.

He said the city has heard and understands concerns about businesses and residents in the area being affected by the shelter.

"This is a much smaller shelter than some of the other ones we've seen downtown," Jorgenson said.

"We've got a service provider that's got a great track record in Alberta providing these services. We've got a commitment from the fire department and the police to support this temporary site, so we do think we have a lot of controls and appropriate responses in place."

Current shelter capacity in Saskatoon

It is uncertain how many total beds the city will have this winter to help those in need.

The proposed enhanced emergency shelter, if approved, could open this winter at 210 Pacific Avenue, offering up to 40 beds.Enhanced shelters like this one provide 24-hour access, three meals a day along, support for addictions, mental health, and wellness, and services to help transition to long-term housing.

The province said a warming centre is also on the way this winter, although the location and timing are yet to be determined. This would be amore basic shelter, providingpeople with the necessities and a place to be overnight.

The province also said spaces at Saskatoon Tribal Council Wellness Centre might be reduced once the new downtown shelter opens.Currently, the Saskatoon Tribal Council Wellness Centre in Fairhaven has 106 beds.

The Salvation Army in Saskatoon can accommodate 80 people. Its executive director Gordon Taylor said adding 40 new beds while reducing capacity elsewhere is insufficient.

"We need a lot more beds than that, and specifically we need more basic shelter beds," he said. "The people we looked after last winter when we ran the overnight warming centre at Saint Marys Church were people who don't stay at enhanced shelters. It's almost a different population."

Last year, the Salvation Army's warming facility served140 to 200 people each night through the winter.

Saskatoon's new emergency shelter is to be run by The Mustard Seed, a Christian organization that runs similar facilities in other cities.

Shirley Isbister, president of the Central Urban Mtis Federation, which provides housing for Indigenous people in need, said she would like to see an Indigenous-led organization in charge of any Saskatoon shelters.

"Ninety to 95 per cent of people in shelters are Indigenous people, they need to be led by Indigenous people. There are a very high number of descendants of residential school and that's probably one of my challenges with the Mustard Seed," Isbister said.

"How many Indigenous people do they have on their board? How many Indigenous people are they going to hire? Are people going to be able to smudge? All of those thoughts go through my mind."