In a 4-2 vote Monday night, Leduc city council decided not to open an emergency shelter this winter. Instead, the city aims to send its homeless to Edmonton.
The vote was a direct reversal of a June 24th decision which approved development of an extreme cold weather shelter.
Mayor Bob Young told Global News his decision was made because of the cost.
He estimated the shelter would be open for about 14 nights between November and April, costing just over $300,000.
“What I’d rather see is for us to create a team of navigators that would be able to search out homeless people and get them to the services they need,” Young said Tuesday.
What he envisions would be similar to the Hope Mission’s 24/7 rescue van, which roams the streets of Edmonton to provide emergency care.
The Hope Mission rescue van in front of Edmonton’s navigation centre (10302 107 Street) on Feb. 5, 2024.
Global News
But Leduc doesn’t have the services Edmonton does, so that team would be bringing people into the city — primarily to the provincially funded navigation centre in the city’s core.
Spruce Grove already does the same.
“The City of Spruce Grove has a team of outreach workers who support individuals with resources specific to the community member’s needs,” the city’s director of communications Jennifer Hetherington said in a statement to Global News.
“This may include connecting them with mental health and addictions specialists, general resource and systems navigation, comprehensive case management, collaboration with other professionals, and exploring different housing options.”
The Hub — Leduc’s only homeless shelter — shut down in May after its lease was up and it couldn’t find a suitable new location. It started 15 years ago as an emergency shelter in the winter but grew and evolved into a community centre. It had 10 emergency shelter beds and provided social services like meals and laundry.
Young insists that with Leduc’s population only being about 32,000 and it’s homeless population being between 20 to 60 people, the new decision will not result in buses full of people being brought to Edmonton.
“The number of people that we’re dealing with is such a small amount compared to what Edmonton has to deal with,” the mayor said.
With the homeless population doubling in Edmonton since the pandemic, Mayor Amarjeet Sohi says his city is already struggling.
“People are desperate for services and they come where services are available and it puts a lot of strain on Edmonton services which are already underfunded,” Sohi said.
“It’s a domino effect.”
He added that bedroom communities bringing homeless people into Edmonton for services is not new, but that the impact is more pronounced now.
Still, Sohi said people will not be turned away.
“A houseless person living in Leduc deserves services. If Leduc is not able to provide those services, then they’re going to come to Edmonton,” he explained.
On Monday, the Alberta government said anyone struggling with homelessness can be seen at the navigation and support centre.
“However, the Navigation Centre is intended to serve Edmonton and typically operates near capacity, seeing between 45 and 50 people daily. We are not encouraging organizations outside of Edmonton to bring clients to the Centre as this would create additional challenges, including getting them back to Leduc or their home communities,” said a statement from the Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction.
Both Sohi and Young want to meet with the province to develop a regional solution, including more funding.
