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Volunteers spent Tuesday morning building tents for unhoused people living in Regina’s Pepsi Park as the number of people now calling the park home continues to grow.
Advocates and community groups gathered at the camp to call for the provincial government to suspend a change to the income assistance program, claiming the program is leading to an increase in evictions and homelessness in Regina.
Peter Gilmer, an advocate with the Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry, said the camp represents the “invisible suffering of thousands of people across Saskatchewan.”
“This could be seen coming for a long time,” said Gilmer. “When the details of the Saskatchewan Income Support program came down in June of 2019 we predicted right off the bat that this was going to cause incredible hardship for people and a growth in homelessness. And two years later that’s exactly what we’re seeing.”
In 2019, the Ministry of Social Services announced the creation of the Saskatchewan Income Support (SIS) program, which would replace the Saskatchewan Assistance Program (SAP) and Transitional Employment Allowance (TEA).
SAP and TEA previously covered the cost of utilities for clients, but the new program puts the costs of rent, utilities, taxes and all other home-related costs under a shelter benefit, meaning a single adult will have to pay for all the home-related costs with 500-600 a month.
Clients also receive 285 to meet all other basic needs including food, transportation, clothing and personal items.
The ministry phased out the SAP and TEA and fully transferred all clients to the SIS program in August.
Meara Conway, the NDP’s social services and housing critic, said the crisis is the government’s own creation.
“We are currently facing a crisis, and I want to emphasize that this is a crisis of government’s own making. This was a slow moving car crash that everyone around me has been warning the government about since 2019,” said Conway.
The latest rental housing list from Carmichael Outreach shows there are no apartments available in Regina in the price range of someone receiving support from the SIS program. At the same time, the government owns 300 housing units in the city that are currently vacant.
Regina city councillor Shanon Zachidniak said the city is able to provide some assistance, but they also need the province’s help.
“The city can help to try and make this camp as comfortable as possible for folks, but what we really need is better solutions from the province,” she said.
About 14 people slept in the camp on Sunday night. Amenities – like an outhouse – are being brought in to make life a little easier for those staying in the tents.
The camp was formed after advocates and community groups met last week to discuss homelessness in the downtown area. While the forum was taking place on the steps of the Knox Metropolitan United Church, a woman, who was experiencing homelessness, died in Victoria Park of a suspected overdose.
The tent city has been named Camp Marjorie in her memory.
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12 pm |
| 26 ℃ |
| BROKEN CLOUDS |
WIND: SSE 33 KM/H
GUSTING TO 40 KM/H |
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1 pm |
| 26 ℃ |
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WIND: SSE 31 KM/H
GUSTING TO 39 KM/H |
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2 pm |
| 27 ℃ |
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WIND: SSE 31 KM/H
GUSTING TO 36 KM/H |
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3 pm |
| 28 ℃ |
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WIND: SSE 29 KM/H
GUSTING TO 32 KM/H |
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4 pm |
| 28 ℃ |
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WIND: SE 37 KM/H
GUSTING TO 37 KM/H |
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5 pm |
| 27 ℃ |
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WIND: SE 36 KM/H
GUSTING TO 43 KM/H |
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6 pm |
| 26 ℃ |
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WIND: SE 42 KM/H
GUSTING TO 50 KM/H |
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7 pm |
| 25 ℃ |
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WIND: SE 39 KM/H
GUSTING TO 54 KM/H |
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TODAY |
HIGH OF 28 ℃
LOW OF 18 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
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SATURDAY |
HIGH OF 24 ℃
LOW OF 17 ℃ |
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SUNDAY |
HIGH OF 23 ℃
LOW OF 16 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
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MONDAY |
HIGH OF 20 ℃
LOW OF 13 ℃ |
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TUESDAY |
HIGH OF 23 ℃
LOW OF 11 ℃ |
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WEDNESDAY |
HIGH OF 14 ℃
LOW OF 10 ℃ |
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THURSDAY |
HIGH OF 17 ℃
LOW OF 9 ℃ |
| LIGHT RAIN |
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FRIDAY |
HIGH OF 19 ℃
LOW OF 13 ℃ |
| MODERATE RAIN |
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HUNTER HAYES
IF YOU CHANGE YOUR MIND
11:59 AM |
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THOMAS RHETT
T SHIRT
11:52 AM |
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CHRIS YOUNG
BRAKE LIGHTS
11:49 AM |
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MIRANDA LAMBERT
LOCOMOTIVE
11:46 AM |
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CHRIS JANSON
EASY TO LOVE HARDER TO HOLD
11:41 AM |
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MACKENZIE PORTER
COMING HOME TO YOU
11:37 AM |
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JAKE MATHEWS
IN OUR OWN BACKYARD
11:33 AM |
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BRANDON DAVIS
SHOWED UP
11:29 AM |
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KELSEA BALLERINI
THE OTHER GIRL
11:26 AM |
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KEVIN FOWLER BAND
BEACH PLEASE
11:23 AM |
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