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Saskatoon City Council has given the green light for an enhanced emergency shelter site to be built in the Central Industrial Area.
The land is located at 170, 31 St. E., owned by the provincial government, is currently a parking lot for Saskatchewan Polytechnic.
“The province will also provide operational funding for shelter services,” read in an earlier statement from the City of Saskatoon.
The province has confirmed during previous emergency shelter searches that The Mustard Seed would operate whichever site is chosen. The Mustard Seed is a Calgary-based Christian non-profit organization that provides services for individuals facing homelessness.
Read more:
- New potential emergency shelter site identified in Saskatoon
- City of Saskatoon struggles to find emergency shelter sites
- Community engagement a top priority for new Saskatoon shelter provider
The Mustard Seed will house about 60 beds in an open shelter-type hall. The shelter will include private rooms, office space for staff, showers, bathrooms, a kitchen and meeting spaces. The Mustard Seed shelter will operate 24 hours per day, seven days a week, to provide homeless people shelter, meals and wellness supports, including help transitioning to appropriate housing.
On Feb. 28, 2024, city council also directed that any site be at least 250 metres from any elementary school.
The city will also consider building a sidewalk to the shelter from Idylwyld Drive along 31 St. E. It’s estimated to cost $350,000. A fence will also be installed along the CPKC Rail line to the east of the site to limit access along the railway corridor, estimated to cost $50,000.
Since October 2023, the city has been searching for suitable locations for the shelter. The city opened a temporary location downtown emergency shelter at 210 Pacific Avenue, which opened in April 2025 for 18 months. According to an earlier statement, the site at 210 Pacific Avenue in downtown Saskatoon is the former Saskatchewan Transportation Company building.
Neighbourhood Information Sessions
The city will hold Neighbourhood Information Sessions for the public to ask questions about the proposed emergency shelter this fall. Representatives from the city, the province and The Mustard Seed will be in attendance. The city will be holding a special meeting for area businesses, stakeholders and the Central Industrial Area community and another session for nearby residents. Community safety will be considered in all aspects of the design and construction of the shelter, said the city in a statement.
The recent Point-in-Time Homeless Count revealed that Saskatoon is experiencing the highest number of individuals facing homelessness ever recorded: 1,499 people are experiencing homelessness, nearly triple the number recorded in 2022.
— With files from Lara Fominoff
