UPDATE: On Dec. 12, the province said it was aware of the proposal but, at this time, a recovery facility between Maskwacis and Wetaskiwin “is not being considered.” A spokesperson said the provincial government remains committed to working with Wetaskiwin city council to help people facing homelessness, which is why it offered funding to build a new shelter.
City council in Wetaskiwin has decided to postpone a decision on approving a new emergency shelter after hearing about another possible facility.
During a meeting on Monday, council was informed about discussions between the province and the four First Nations in Maskwacis about a recovery centre being built between Wetaskiwin and Maskwacis, which is just down the highway.
Therefore, councillors voted to postpone their decision on approving the development permit on the Hope Mission shelter until their next meeting on Jan. 22, 2024.
“I think a recovery facility is welcome in Maskwacis,” said Tim Pasma with the Hope Mission. “I think that a lot of people would recognize it and support it.
“What we feel like is needed in this community is a shelter as well. So I think it’s more of an ‘and and,’ rather than just one or the other. We need a whole spectrum of support.
“This is an emergency shelter that’s being built here. It’s not a recovery facility. It can refer to any other treatment facilities across the province. Having one in Maskwacis would make a lot of sense,” Pasma said.
In April, council approved a land donation to Hope Mission and $3.2 million in funding from the province for a new permanent Hope Mission emergency shelter that would replace the current temporary one and offer other social services to help vulnerable people in Wetaskiwin.
In May, council approved the development permit for the facility based on a preliminary site plan.
However, the province met with the four First Nations in Maskwacis which were advocating for a potential treatment centre in the county, presented it to several Wetaskiwin councillors, and on Monday, it became public in the council meeting.
“What we need to do now is just see what that looks like, whether it works in conjunction with a shelter that has been approved by council or if this is something completely different, where it’s going to be a shelter and a treatment facility all in one spot,” Wetaskiwin Mayor Tyler Gandam said.
He said council will get a report back from administration in the new year about possible options and he hopes a decision can be made at the Jan. 22 meeting. Gandam said the city has been looking for a permanent solution for five years now.
“What I’m maybe a little concerned about is we’ve been talking about this for over a year, we’ve got a project that the province has agreed to partially fund, and then at the 11th hour, we’ve got a new project proposed,” the mayor said.
“So, what that looks like moving forward, I’m not sure. It would have been nicer to have this incorporated into what we’ve been working on.”
Still, Gandam said it’s great to learn that the four chiefs are signing on and this presents a great opportunity to work together with the First Nations.
“We’re here trying to either make a person’s life better or save some lives, and that’s been the goal the entire time.”
On Tuesday evening, the province issued a statement saying the proposed recovery facility between Maskwacis and Wetaskiwin “is not being considered” at this time.
A spokesperson for the ministry of mental health and addictions said, however, it was aware of the proposal and happy to meet with community partners to hear about the need for the facility.
“Alberta’s government is focused on the 11 recovery communities that are planned or underway across the province. Four of these facilities are being built in direct partnership with First Nations to support culturally-appropriate healing from the deadly disease of addiction,” Hunter Baril wrote in a statement to Global News.
Those four facilities are being built with the Blood Tribe, Enoch, Tsuut’ina and Siksika.
“Other facilities are located in Red Deer, Lethbridge, Gunn, Calgary and Grande Prairie, with more locations yet to be announced in Edmonton and the North zone. Once complete, every health zone in Alberta will have at least one recovery community offering holistic, long-term, live-in treatment at no cost.”
Baril added that the provincial government remains committed to working with Wetaskiwin city council to help people facing homelessness, which is why it offered funding to build a new shelter.
Residents have been voicing opposition to the permanent shelter proposal. A group called Wake Up Wetaskiwin has been calling on the city to scrap the plans, citing concerns with crime and safety.
In November, hundreds of people gathered to share their reservations, including a petition with more than 1,000 signatures asking the city to deny the Hope Mission development permit.
“They can’t ignore that. They shouldn’t ignore that,” Wetaskiwin resident Debbie Hunker said.
The group has been frustrated by council’s decision to approve the new shelter despite residents’ disapproval. However Hunker said Monday’s developments were encouraging.
“We need a smaller shelter here, there’s no doubt about that,” she said.
“It’s the criminal element that moves in to further prey on that population, that is the problem. And we can’t deal with both.
“They were talking about… the four bands on board with a shelter that would not be on reserve, not be in the city, it would be somewhere in between, which is a better option,” Hunker said.
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Hope Mission said it was hoping to break ground on the site in the spring and wants to open in 2024.
“We remain committed to this community,” Pasma said. “We remain committed to having a shelter in this community, which we feel is really necessary. We see a lot of people in need in the community.
“We understand that there are concerns and we’re willing to work with the community on that.”
Pasma said there’s still a big need for a permanent facility that will provide comprehensive services for 60 people, services that include medical, housing and other social work.
“We don’t see this as a mega shelter.”
While Hope Mission awaits council’s decision, it will focus on helping people at the temporary shelter it’s currently operating.
“We’re ready to go. We have what we need. We’ve made a lot of investments in planning this facility and getting all the regulatory things done… We’ll just see where it goes,” Pasma said.
The mayor stressed that doing nothing is not an option and will only worsen the issues of addiction, mental illness and homelessness.
“My biggest fear is that, in the absence of any kind of shelter, it turns so much worse,” Gandam said.
“This is not a ‘build it and they will come.’ They’re already here and they’re showing up in communities that haven’t seen this issue before. So it’s really important that we get ahold of this — both mental health and addictions and the homelessness.”
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