City passes bylaw addressing unsafe outdoor living in Yorkton

Yorkton, Sask. -

A new Fire Prevention Bylaw was introduced in the City of Yorkton aiming to address unsafe outdoor living.

The bylaw was passed at Yorkton’s city council meeting on Sept. 9 following Yorkton’s Fire Protective Services delegation about emergency measures.

“It is our responsibility to have things in place so that when temperatures hit at dangerously low levels, or dangerously high levels, that we have the ability to help people and get them to where they need to be,” explained Fire Chief Trevor Morrissey.

The policy applies to property owned and rented by the city. Morrissey stated the fire department has been working on the bylaw for years due to an increase of vulnerable populations in cities across Saskatchewan.

“We have to recognize that people do have the right to live the way they want to live, but if it’s unsafe to themselves and to others, our bylaw gives us the ability to help them get to a place that’s not unsafe,” Morrissey said.

“It’s not about tearing down tents and taking people’s belongings, it’s all about making sure that whatever state you choose to live in, we’re giving you a hand to make sure it’s safe.”

Aside from being proactive on safety measures, the bylaw aims to bring awareness about the resources available in Yorkton, specifically Bruno’s Place.

“Bruno’s Place is an emergency shelter. We have 20 beds now for adults only,” said coordinator Angela Chernoff.

“We offer safe shelter, we offer three meals a day for shelter clients plus some community meals that are open to the community. We also offer some programming, we have a scheduled program that we post on Facebook every month.”

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Chernoff explained the shelter does not offer drug rehabilitation programs but helps connect people to services if they are looking to work on goals.

“We do have six non-medical detox beds. All that really is, is observation for those that are going through minor withdrawal that don’t need medical assistance for it,” she said.

“For many people, it’s a break from using a substance so an opportunity to have a good night’s sleep, sometimes before do choose to sleep off meth for about 72 hours and we can support that as long as it’s just observation, but we don’t hold anyone.”

Chernoff emphasized the shelter is available to people who choose to use it.

“If someone is here for a few hours for that and they choose to leave, that’s their choice,” she expressed.”

"We're not a formal detox or social detox, not anything like that, we can assist through case planning and making those connections with an addictions councillor, maybe YTC's support, and getting them on the track to the treatment that they want."

Next steps on addressing community issue

With the bylaw being in force, Yorkton Protective Fire Services said they plan to work with the private sector and public groups to develop a long-term solution.

“We’re pulling together all agencies that provide services right now,” Morrissey explained.

“We’re pulling those agencies together to figure out where the gaps are in services in our community. From there, we will have a plan as to how we approach the problem at every level.

“We’re looking at a no round door policy. It doesn’t matter where you walk into, you should get the same answer no matter where you go. Access to services is paramount to this group.”

He said he is hopeful the plan will come together in the next couple of weeks and will be seeking input from Yorkton’s Chamber of Commerce along with youth advisor councils to address the root of the issue.