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The Mustard Seed is asking the province to fund two emergency shelters on Edmonton’s south side this winter as the number of homeless people continues to rise.
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Provincial funding for four temporary shelters run by the nonprofit ended in September, causing the spaces to be closed and the city’s shelter system losing about 85 beds.
With colder weather on the horizon, Mustard Seed Edmonton’s program director Kris Knutson said the organization needs dollars to operate two additional shelters 24/7, for a total of 120 to 150 overnight sleeping spaces on the south side. Currently, a night shelter is operating at the Knox Evangelical Church, but the organization pays for it after funding from the province ends.
There are about 1,200 more homeless Edmontons than at the start of the pandemic last March for a total of 2,811 people, according to data from the Homeward Trust. The Mustard Seed is currently in talks with the province to strike new deals, which Knutson said he advocates happening within the next eight weeks.
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“Shelter is still in great need. In the last two years we have seen an increase in the homeless population in Edmonton, but not a dramatic increase in shelter space, so we still need more shelter spaces in Edmonton and more housing, ”Knutson said in an interview. with Postmedia. “Because ultimately, if we can fix housing, then hopefully we don’t need any more shelters.”
North Side Shelter Extending Operations
A shelter on the north side of the city received an extension of funding from the province that will allow it to remain open for another month. Operated by Hope Mission, the Spectrum building at the city’s Northlands site has been operating as a 24/7 shelter with a capacity of 200 people overnight since May and was initially supposed to close late October.
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In a statement to Postmedia, Social and Community Services spokesman Justin Marshall said the province is aware of Mustard Seed’s request and is working with them to ensure there is enough space for those in need.
“We are reviewing your application, but no decisions have been made at this time. We continue to work with all our partners to ensure that the most vulnerable are protected during the winter months, ”he said in an email to Postmedia.
But NDP leader Rachel Notley said consistent and predictable funding would eliminate these shelter closures and the need for organizations to return to the negotiating table to open shelter spaces in time for winter.
“It’s just not fair to put all these shelter provider agencies in a constant state of emergency in terms of having to try to find new money month to month or season to season and in the meantime disrupt the many people they are trying to support,” he said in an interview with Postmedia.
Currently, the province provides $ 39 million annually to support the housing and homeless in Edmonton.
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Reference-edmontonjournal.com