Picture of resident addressing speakers at the "On The Record" community meeting.--News Photo Anna Smith
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
Tensions were high during a panel hosted on Wednesday night, allowing members of the Medicine Hat community to get answers in regards to shelters in the city.
The discussion was hosted by the Medicine Hat Community Housing Society and the Mustard Seed, with manager of homeless and housing development Jaime Rogers and Mustard Seed CEO James Gardiner.
The purpose of the meeting was to allow for an open space for residents to ask questions surrounding the shelter, including regarding the current temporary spaces on Allowance Avenue and plans for the eventual relocation of the shelter. Concerns were also brought forward by several residents of the community surrounding the shelters.
These concerns largely followed the lines of behavioural issues that affect the neighbourhood, such as drug use, thefts, or mistreatment of residents or Mustard Seed staff, but also raised points about the need for those using the services to find transport between two different locations in order to access both day services and overnight stays.
“I think that we heard loud and clear that the community is ready to have the shelter relocated, and also I’ve heard a lot of compassion for the individuals that are still experiencing homelessness,” said Rogers after the meeting. “So it’s not about whether there should be a shelter or not, it’s where the best location is to serve the needs of all communities, from a business standpoint, from a neighbourhood standpoint and from the operations standpoint.”
While there is no location selected for the relocation yet, the Mustard Seed is looking forward to seeing what can be found so it can begin to facilitate moving into a space that better suits the needs of both the unhoused residents of Medicine Hat, as well as the community that surrounds them.
Gardiner said they have submitted the application to house 20 people at the Allowance Avenue location on request from the province, in order to help those in need during the cold winter months.
He continued that, ideally, they will be looking for a space that is not in a residential district, to hopefully better address the concerns of the community.
“Moving forward, I would like to see us have a closer relationship with the neighbours and make sure that they’re heard to a greater degree than maybe has happened in the past,” said Gardiner. He explained that the “big picture issue” is the need to find an appropriate site for their operation, and as such, the Mustard Seed is highly desirous of seeing that location identified.
“It’s not just for the legitimate concerns of the neighbours. It’s also for the fact that we have people that are transporting between two locations, and some of them have mobility issues,” said Gardiner. “We need a more appropriate location for the people that we serve, as well as for the neighbourhood.”
