Saskatoon councillor pleased with provincial plan for Lighthouse

Cynthia Block, councillor for Ward 6 in Saskatoon, was pleased to hear that the province will be stepping up and buying the Lighthouse in the city’s downtown.

The Court of King’s Bench approved the sale of the Lighthouse – which offers supported and affordable housing along with emergency shelter spaces – to the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation (SHC) on Monday. The move comes after the Lighthouse was placed in receivership earlier this year.

The corporation is to take possession on Jan. 5.

“We always knew that there needed to be a change there at some point,” Block said.

“From the city’s perspective, we just want to make sure it’s happening in a co-ordinated way, and in a way that people that need access to the services that the Lighthouse provides continue and people have a safe place to be for the winter.”

Gene Makowsky, Saskatchewan’s social services minister and minister responsible for the SHC, said the move will provide both safety and stability for the tenants.

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“We want to ensure all people who currently reside at that location continue to have access to services and supports that help maintain their connection to housing as we work with them to transition to alternate accommodations in the community,” Makowsky said in a statement.

The provincial government said it purchased the Lighthouse for $11,080,676, which includes $8,580,676 in loan forgiveness.

Over the next two to three years, the government will transition Lighthouse residents to subsidized or supportive housing in the community, based on their individual needs.

“Saskatchewan Housing Corporation will immediately begin work with community partners to identify suitable alternate accommodations for the tenants,” a statement from the province said.

“Once alternate housing and support services are in place and long-term transition plans are complete, SHC plans to divest the property.”

The government said it understands there are 122 tenants at the Lighthouse, with 50 of the residents living in the supportive housing tower.

Supportive housing services at the facility include meal programs, along with addictions recovery and cultural programming.

Those services will remain in place until the end of this fiscal year on March 31, 2024. The government will then begin an open procurement process to contract services over the long term. Residents will not see a change or disruption in their support services during this time, the government noted.

Block, whose ward includes the Lighthouse, said she thinks the plan crafted by the province makes sense.

“I’m actually pleased to see that they are creating a co-ordinated plan and increasing shelter spaces in our city, and trying a different approach where we’re able to have smaller accommodations for people who need homes,” she explained.

Ward 6 Councillor Cynthia Block says it’s important that services aren’t disrupted for those relying on them. (650 CKOM file photo)

It’s not known what will happen with the property on Second Avenue South once the transition is completed, but Block said she’s hopeful it can be used to benefit Saskatoon’s downtown.

“We just want to make sure that people have a home and they’re safe, and anything the province is doing to support that is good news for our city,” Block said.

“I also think it’s important that we’re creating a vibrant downtown that works for everyone, and that has to be inclusive of everybody, but I can also see there’s some real opportunity with that strategic location where the Lighthouse is right now that could be of interest to the developer.”

In June of 2022, the Ministry of Social Services said services would be moved out of the Lighthouse due to ongoing issues.

Since October of that year, 61 emergency shelters spaces have been moved out of Lighthouse to new community partners, while the Lighthouse served as the landlord for 58 self-contained rental suites and 59 supportive suites, with services delivered by other providers.