Just earlier this month, the City of Regina moved residents of Camp Hope to a temporary shelter.
Now residents and business owners in the area have various concerns as to why the City didn’t consult residents in the area.
Brain Cooper resides in the Warehouse District, said he has no problem with what the City did with finding the resident’s shelter but does have concerns about how the City went about it.
“As a community, I think we have the need to know what is happening,” he said. “Even in an emergent situation, the City could have taken the time to at least contact people within the close proximity of the location to inform them of what was going on, and we could have raised our concerns at that time of any issues that were maybe.”
“We could have raised concerns about the property itself, and somethings that could have been improved upon with the property to ensure the safety of the residents themselves that are moving into it, and that of the community. I don’t think that is an unfair request in any manner,” Cooper continued.
The City has stated they did not release the location for the security and privacy of the residents.
Cooper said another concern he has is why the City is paying to shelter the residents.
“Did the City use taxpayer dollars in the best interest of the taxpayers, moving them to a location that is not City-owned,” he said. “You are telling me that the City doesn’t have a location that they could use as a temporary emergency shelter; we must have some kind of program in place.”`
The six-month lease is costing the City $16,000 a month.
Cooper added that overall the secrecy and lack of transparency from the City are his primary concerns, as the residents and business owners in the area just wanted a chance to ask questions instead of being left in the dark.
“The City would like to emphasize the extreme urgency of making this shelter available and to note that the temporary shelter is scheduled to be open for six months,” The City of Regina said in a written release. “The City thanks all residents for their patience and their cooperation as we work together to protect our community’s most vulnerable residents. The temporary shelter is being professionally managed by Regina Treaty / Status Indian Services (RTSIS), who have many years experience providing a wide range of supports to Regina’s most vulnerable individuals. RTSIS will conduct its operations as a responsible member of the Warehouse District community. Professional wrap-around services to support shelter residents are available on-site, including staff from RTSIS, Ministry of Social Services, and Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA). Security and other supervision are on site 24 hours a day.”
