Mayor Bill Powalinsky says that city businesses and residents have been advocating for a Complex Needs facility for some time. (Susan McNeil/paNOW)

By Susan McNeil

Complex Needs Emergency Shelter

Complex Needs facility gets green light from city council

Aug 25, 2025 | 5:08 PM

Following another round of discussion by Prince Albert city council, the final changes passed to allow an application to turn the old Sask Liquor Store into a 24-hour complex needs facility to go ahead.

Two city councillors checked out a similar facility in Saskatoon in the days before the final vote in Monday’s regular council meeting.

“A lot of people in Prince Albert have a concern who live in the area, that there’ll be people loitering. There will be just people hanging out and that police will be bringing people in and out. And I saw absolutely none of that. It was extremely clean,” said Coun. Dawn Kilmer.

She actually went twice to Saskatoon, watching the activity around their facility for 1.5 hours the first time, then asking for a tour of the interior the second time.

“Even though our job is not operational at all – our job is the zoning – we want it to succeed, just like the government wants it to succeed,” she said.

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She had pictured a cell block type facility based on how the people inside will be held – which is in a 24-hour lockup for public intoxication – but to her surprise, it was much more comfortable than that.

Multiple security guards were in the building along with two nurses and the patients/guests can shower, eat, wash their clothing and access other supports, such as help with addictions or their mental health.

“They are treated like a person who deserves to be treated in a dignified manner, and they’re monitored there,” she said.

With the passing of the re-zoning, the provincial staff that attended the council meeting online said they hope to have the building operational by March 31 of next year.

Coun. Darren Solomon made a similar pilgrimage to Saskatoon and reported similar findings, the interior of the building was quiet and there were no issues with loitering or vagrancy outside.

Part of the plan with the Complex Needs facilities is to help the patients find help treating the reason they are there but they will also be given rides to places such as the Prince Albert Grand Council for more help.

Some councillors, like Blake Edwards, have been pushing the province for several years for exactly this type of response to a growing issue of people suffering from serious mental health crisis presenting a danger to themselves or others.

“This isn’t rushed. We’ve been talking about this type of facility for years,” he said.

Council also commissioned a study on the homeless situation and a CNES is one of the solutions suggested in the study.

The vote to move forward had only two councillors opposed; Bryce Laewetz and Dan Brown.

Mayor Bill Powalinsky said while he understands that a new concept can give people some pause, he anticipates this is one aspect of a solution that will see some results.

“We really want this thing to get opened as quickly as possible; it’s something we really need, something the business community has been asking for, citizens/residents of the community have been asking for it and in a lot of cases, our police and the health care system is also. We’ve really been looking for a solution,” he said.

While there are not very many residences in that part of town, there was some worry about the safety of people living in three seniors towers several blocks away.

Facility staff will not allow loitering on the property and in Saskatoon and Regina, the people housed there usually take the available rides to other destinations.

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susan.mcneil@pattisonmedia.com

On BlueSky: @susanmcneil.bsky.social