REGINA — The Regina Street Team (RST) will have a new temporary home starting April 1.
YWCA Regina will oversee the outreach program, which strongly believes in the impact of its work.
“It is an incredibly vital tool for not just supporting the folks who are living on the streets or navigating houselessness, but also it’s an incredible tool for community organizations that serve those people in different ways,” said YWCA Regina CEO Melissa Coomber-Bendtsen.
Since its inception, Coomber-Bendtsen said the YWCA has played a role in the development and growth of RST as the need for its services continues to expand.
This growth led the Regina Downtown Business Improvement District (RDBID), which operates the RST, to determine the organization had gone beyond its intended scope.
Deciding on the RST future, Regina city council passed a motion in November to incorporate the RST either into a non-profit organization or the City of Regina.
Waiting on a future decision, Judith Veresuk, executive director of the RDBID, said at last week’s Regina executive committee meeting that the RST would still be under the organization until March.
RDBID declined to comment on the timeline.
More supports
Under the YWCA, Coomber-Bendtsen said the RST will extend its hours from around 6-7 a.m. until nearly 12 a.m.
“The extended hours, I think, will provide additional support both to people and to community organizations that are also serving that population and may not have the same kind of flexibility.”
As of now, Coomber-Bendtsen mentioned the RST had only been operating from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
She added that the YWCA can also provide the RST with support from its human resources team, training and development department and other services.
“Being part of some of those pieces will help with that stability and some of the needs,” said Coomber-Bendtsen.
During their stay at the YWCA, the City of Regina will be paying for the RST operations, said Coomber-Bendtsen.
Coomber-Bendtsen said she could not provide an exact timeframe for how long the YWCA will continue operating the RST.
As for operating the RST permanently, Coomber-Bendtsen said YWCA Regina has no interest in that. However, she did say she believes the RST should be under a non-profit organization rather than the city.
“It is best suited with a community organization that has the ability to de-institutionalize the response and really make sure that it stays rooted in the community rather than be potentially impacted by political decisions.”
One organization that has expressed interest in taking over the RST is Regina Mobile Crisis Service.
