A report to Saskatoon’s new City Council next Wednesday will look at how to address the safety and well-being of those experiencing homelessness this winter and how to fund it.

The evening warming centre will be at the Saskatoon Indian and Métis Friendship Centre on Wall Street and it will also be the warming location for women overnight. The men’s overnight warming location will be St. Mary’s Parish on 20th Street, operated by the Salvation Army, and overnight outreach services will be operated by Sawēyihtotān, from Saskatoon Tribal Council. They are outreach teams that meet Saskatoon’s most vulnerable on the street, in encampments, and living outdoors.

Total funding to operate the centres and outreach until the end of March is estimated to by $1.2 million. That includes staffing, operations and utilities, program supplies, janitorial and facility maintenance.

From donations and from contributions from the provincial, Indigenous and federal governments, $1 million is available. Saskatoon Emergency Management Organization, in partnership with community organizations, is asking for $200,000 from the City’s Reserve for Capital Expenditures to fill the funding gap. Administration is also developing a new Saskatoon Homelessness Action Plan along with community partners, for a more comprehensive year-round approach which would include stable funding from both the federal and provincial governments.