Sask. mayors call for better use of government housing to deal with homelessness
Emergency shelters across Saskatchewan are full and some people are living in tents as temperatures drop and snowfall increases.
“Our shelter has been full every day and unfortunately at the end of the day there are folks that we have to refer to other agencies,” Major Al Hoeft of the Salvation Army told CTV News.
Saskatchewan’s city mayors say $600 a month in social assistance isn’t enough for single people to survive on in their communities.
Many, like Mayor Gerald Aalbers, believe it’s a contributing factor to homelessness.
“The cities are involved because people end up at our door. Our police departments, our fire departments are getting called to clean up, to assist, to house and that’s not their job,” he said.
Saskatchewan’s mayors think the provincial government’s 3,000 vacant housing units could be part of the solution.
Current rules primarily allow seniors or families as tenants, shutting out many single people who have nowhere to go.
“We end up having to hold vacant properties that we can’t fill,” Mayor Sandra Masters said.
“I believe that’s being worked on right now because the city mayor’s caucus of SUMA has brought that to the attention of the government.”
The Government of Saskatchewan says it’s one of the top provinces in Canada for meeting people’s basic needs.
However, the government did say it is looking for better ways to match public housing with those who need somewhere to live.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.