Social services seeking 'preferred rates' in renting hotel rooms following Sunrise Motel criticism
The province is now seeking preferred rates when renting hotel rooms as emergency shelter for those on social assistance.
The Government of Saskatchewan has paid a premium for some hotel rooms used as emergency shelter.
It’s because the province won’t pay damage deposits. That policy has now changed and the government is seeking preferred rates.
“Hopefully we will be able to procure rooms in both Regina and Saskatoon for a set price as well as using damage deposits to see if that will increase the amount of hotels willing to take clients,” Social Services Minister Gene Makowksy said Tuesday.
Last year, the Ministry of Social Services spent $1.5 million on hotel rooms. That included $220,000 at Regina’s Sunrise Motel – which is owned by Saskatchewan Party MLA Gary Grewal.
Grewal has said he isn’t involved in the day-to-day operations.
“First we learned about the Sunrise Motel, but we need to talk a little more about the Thriftlodge Motel,” NDP MLA Meara Conway said during question period.
“I wrote to the minister in February about this. No answer. I asked about it last week. No response.”
Grewal is not involved in operations at the Thriftlodge in Regina but has declared the hotel as a source of income as a lender.
“How much public money did his ministry pay out in the last five years to the Thriftlodge Motel?” Conway asked. “The motel invested in by his office mate, the Sask. Party member for Regina Northeast [Gary Grewal].”
In his response to the questions, the Makowsky said he did not have the information – adding that “a lot of information was passed on to that member,” in reference to Conway.
The government says it will have an answer for the opposition before the current session of the legislature ends in May.
It also hopes to have competing bids from hotels that will result in reduced room rates.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
First court appearance for boy and girl charged in death of Halifax 16-year-old
A girl and a boy, both 14 years old, made their first appearance today in a Halifax courtroom, where they each face a second-degree murder charge in the stabbing death of a 16-year-old high school student.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Haida elder suing Catholic Church and priest, hopes for 'healing and reconciliation'
The lawyer for a residential school survivor leading a proposed class-action defamation lawsuit against the Catholic Church over residential schools says the court action is a last resort.
Yemen's Houthi rebels claim downing U.S. Reaper drone, release footage showing wreckage of aircraft
Yemen's Houthi rebels on Saturday claimed shooting down another of the U.S. military's MQ-9 Reaper drones, airing footage of parts that corresponded to known pieces of the unmanned aircraft.
Britney Spears settles long-running legal dispute with estranged father, finally bringing ultimate end to conservatorship
Britney Spears has reached a settlement with her estranged father more than two years after the court-ordered termination of a conservatorship that had given him control of her life, their attorneys said.
Cisco reveals security breach, warns of state-sponsored spy campaign
State-sponsored actors targeted security devices used by governments around the world, according to technology firm Cisco Systems, which said the network devices are coveted intrusion points by spies.