Saskatoon braces for rise in homelessness this summer

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]The estimated number of people living homelessness in the homeless in the city of Saskatoon has quadrupled in 2 years.

[00:00:09]And the resources to get ahead of that problem have reduced. Plotting a path forward to help with homelessness and social disorder on Saskatoon streets was before city council once again, and they heard loud and clear the crisis is getting worse quickly with more people reacting to worsening drug problems. My own nurse's wish list was better knee pads.

[00:00:33]They needed better knee pads because the knee pads we had for them doing CPR on overdose response, they weren't fitting the bill.

[00:00:41]>> Just over a month ago, Prairie Harm Reduction shut down and lost its federal license to operate a safe consumption site amid a financial shortfall. First responders say the loss of Prairie Harm is a contributing factor to what Estherby called an unprecedented number of overdoses. You know, the larger issue is the number of people who are experiencing homelessness, the the sheer volume in Saskatoon. Now, the focus is shifting on trying to maintain what the city is doing while looking for more on weekends and evenings near shelters as services and community organizations feel additional strain on resources.

[00:01:18]We're on this steady trajectory of this growth with our unhoused population that is creating pressures in our [snorts] community. So, we're seeing that from a from an operations piece, from, you know, police working with fire, working with the city of Saskatoon. Estherby says while many things are out of the city's control, business improvement districts can work with organizations like his to limit the impact on the wider area until more is done at the provincial level to tackle mental health and addictions issues further upstream.

[00:01:47]Keenan Sorokan, CTV News, Saskatoon.