(File Photo/paNOW Staff)

By Jaryn Vecchio

Homeless Crisis

P.A. homeless shelter helps 445 people during winter, had to turn away around 14 daily

May 3, 2023 | 2:00 PM

Prince Albert’s homeless shelter ended up helping nearly 450 people over the winter.

Stepping Stones, which is operated by YWCA Prince Albert, officially closed for the season on April 30 after being open since November.

During that time, 445 people slept in one of the 30 beds offered each night. This is slightly up from previous years. This includes back in 2020/21, the first season the shelter was open, which saw 427 use the shelter, and in 2021/22 which saw 422 different people.

Overall, the beds were used 5,888 times. This is up from the previous year which saw the beds used 5,149 times, however, Stepping Stones was only offering 20 beds a night unless there was extreme weather. During these situations, the shelter upped its bed count to 30.

On average, staff had to turn away 14 people a night. The YWCA didn’t have a number for the previous season; however, they estimate it was lower.

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Brian Howell, the general manager of the River Bank Development Corporation, told paNOW these numbers prove that a larger shelter is needed for the city.

“We need a 40 to 50-bed shelter (at least).”

Multiple groups continue to work on setting up a new, permanent shelter in Prince Albert. This includes the YWCA, River Bank Development Corporation, Prince Albert Grand Council (PAGC), and the city of P.A.

“There’s not that many buildings that are the right size,” said Howell. “Once you have the shelter and the core funding, it’s pretty easy to operate but getting there is a big job.”

Right now, the biggest issue is finding the right location.

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Jaryn.Vecchio@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow