REGINA — It’s been nearly a year since the YWCA Regina moved into the Cathedral neighbourhood. While nearby residents support the shelter, they feel their safety and health risks aren’t being addressed.
A resident who wished to remain anonymous said the neighbourhood has changed from what it was like nine years ago.
“We’ve had several things stolen out of our vehicle in the past year. We’ve [also] seen enough drug use and needles being found around the neighbourhood, probably in the ballpark of about 25 times more in the last 10 months than in the previous eight years beforehand.”
The resident also mentioned people using drugs or needles surrounding their garage.
“One of my concerns is [that] we live in an arid climate and grass can get really dry, and if they’re smoking back there, it could cause a potential fire hazard for our garage and our property.”
“Additionally, some [shelters] residents are out there smoking and making a little too much noise for the late hours of the night.”
Since it’s opening, they’ve tried reaching out to the group multiple times and left voicemails, but their calls have gone unanswered.
“It makes me feel like our concerns aren’t valid, that they’re just trying to push through day to day but aren’t willing to hear the concerns and work to fix them.”
Mike Thorley, who lives across from the shelter, felt the communication with YWCA Regina has been great.
“We’ve had good conversations phone-wise and email-wise with the centre itself [and] have had great responses from the centre. They’re trying to do whatever they can at the times we need to.”
While Thorley appreciated the communication, he feels there are still issues that need to be addressed.
Thorley also said people have been sneaking around the alleyways of homes and sleeping on the grass.
He believes the shelter should add security in the middle of the night to address these issues.
Despite this, Thorley feels Cathedral is a great area to stay in and fully supports the shelter.
Responding to these concerns, YWCA Regina CEO Melissa Coomber-Bendtsen said the organization is addressing safety issues.
“Our staff have gone out to help support [people in need], move them along, and try to find them services. We’ve [also] had several community cleanups around our building, in our neighbours’ yards, where our residents and our staff go out as soon as the snow melts.”
Coomber-Bendtsen mentioned conversations will continue to improve safety around the shelter.
“We are working closely with the police, who support the work that we do, [and] hopefully we can also support our neighbours in meeting their needs.“
Comments