SASKATOON — Homelessness, food insecurity, mental health and addiction, and the rising cost of living remain the top issues that the city continued to struggle with in 2025, with local leaders trying to keep up to address the problems.
These are the social issues the city will continue to navigate in 2026, which pose public safety concerns and economic uncertainty, with residents facing a 6.7 per cent property tax increase approved by the city council after four days of deliberation in the city’s $1.7 billion budget.
The Point-In-Time Count, released in late October, showed an increase of 400 people who consider themselves homeless, up from 1,931 to 1,499 last year, something Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Mark Arcand said is both alarming and scary.
Arcand said the high numbers are concerning, adding that those who are experiencing homelessness have different situations, with some having no mental or addiction issues, but who can’t afford rent right now due to the rising cost. Still, these are things that need to be addressed.
The PiT Count’s breakdown shows that 725 (unsheltered), 444 (staying in transitional homes), 327 (emergency shelters), 237 (experiencing hidden homelessness), 151 (living in encampments), and 47 (other systems). Hidden homelessness is when people are staying with their relatives or friends.
Arcand has been one of the most vocal proponents on the issues of homelessness, mental health and addictions, with the latter causing several overdose cases. He has been one of the vocal proponents of the said issues, as the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 contributed to the ongoing crisis.
Emergency shelters, such as the STC’s Emergency Wellness Centre and St. Mary’s, frequently operated at or near capacity. At the same time, outreach organizations continued to report increased demand for services, particularly during extreme weather conditions.
Non-profit organizations and other groups, such as the Saskatoon Indian and Metis Friendship Centre, have been trying to keep up, with the Saskatoon Food Bank seeing a dramatic rise in people availing of its services, and the Friendship Inn serving more meals to feed those in need of free breakfast and lunch daily.
Local leaders admitted that the said issues are deeply interconnected. Those working on the frontlines said addiction and untreated mental health issues often lead to chronic homelessness, creating a cycle that is difficult to break without long-term, coordinated solutions from all levels of government—municipal, provincial, and federal.
City council spent much of the year debating funding priorities to address these issues, including harm reduction strategies, shelter expansions, and supportive housing initiatives. While some progress was made through pilot programs and partnerships, officials conceded that the pace of change has struggled to keep up with growing needs.
Public safety
Public safety also emerged as a major story in 2025, closely tied to concerns about social disorder. Visible encampments, drug use that often leads to overdose, property crime, and disorder in core neighbourhoods, had the Saskatoon Police Service and Saskatoon Fire Department putting on additional resources to respond to incidents.
The SFD has been leading the city’s encampment response, and has asked the public to report sightings of “tent cities” that suddenly pop up in various neighbourhoods in the city, including in parks. They've also asked for reports of people staying in makeshift homes as the weather continues to drop, to help prevent the risk of fire-related incidents in their areas due to those using improvised heaters.
The SFD has identified that there have been 90 encampment fires reported in the last two months, or about two per day, with some almost resulting in a fatality.
Healthcare strain
Healthcare pressures also hogged the headlines, with local hospitals and emergency departments continuing to feel strain from patients experiencing mental health crises and substance-related emergencies, highlighting the gaps in community-based mental health and addiction professionals and proper treatment services.
While boasts of economic development and growth continue, the increasing population has put a strain on housing; despite the rising rent, the province's average rental cost remains one of the lowest in the country. However, as Saskatoon sees 2025 close and looks ahead to 2026, if the issues of homelessness, addiction, mental health, and food insecurity remain unresolved in terms of how to support the vulnerable residents, it will be a storm cloud lingering above, waiting to unleash more problems.
