Canada    
News release

October 13, 2004

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

First project approved under Prince Albert Community Action Plan on Homelessness and Housing

news release

Date October 13, 2004 For release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

First project approved under Prince Albert Community Action Plan on Homelessness and Housing PRINCE ALBERT, SASKATCHEWAN — The Honourable Ralph Goodale, Minister of Finance and Member of Parliament for Wascana, on behalf of the Honourable Joe Fontana, Minister of Labour and Housing, today announced the approval of the Prince Albert Community Services Co-location Feasibility Study, Prince Albert’s first project under the renewed Community Action Plan on Homelessness and Housing. Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert received $20,400 through the Government of Canada’s National Homelessness Initiative to conduct the feasibility study.Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert formed a partnership with the Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and the YWCA to support the feasibility study. It will determine if co-location of organizations will expand services and strengthen existing capacity to better meet the needs of clients who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. “The Government of Canada is committed to helping our communities find local solutions to address homelessness,” said Minister Goodale. “This feasibility study will help Prince Albert explore more effective ways to serve homeless and at-risk members of the community.” “Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert is very pleased to receive funding to conduct the Prince Albert Community Services Co-location Feasibility Study,” said Louise Zurowski, Executive Director, Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert. “In partnership with PACADA and the YWCA, we created this project in response to the growing need for a co-location of the continuum of support services. This feasibility study will provide opportunities to engage the agencies working with homeless people or those at-risk in our community. The funding will also support the exploration of a multi-service centre which will encourage on-going and collective community strategic planning, improve access to support services and to additional resources and along with enhancing agencies sustainability.”

Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert is providing $14,072 in-kind to the Prince Albert Community Services Co-location Feasibility Study. The YWCA of Prince Albert and the Prince Albert Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse are also supporting the project, through in-kind contributions of over $5,000 each. By working in partnership with community organizations, the private and voluntary sectors, and other levels of government, the National Homelessness Initiative brings together all stakeholders to develop local solutions that work to address particular needs and challenges faced by homeless people. Priorities are then set through a structured Community Plan. The Government of Canada launched the Initiative in December 1999 to support communities’ efforts to help Canadians move out of homelessness. Since 1999, there have been investments of over $13 million – through more than 70 projects – to address homelessness in Saskatchewan. Funding is provided for in the 2004 Budget.



Since December 1999, communities across Canada have undertaken over 1,800 projects, funded wholly or in part by the National Homelessness Initiative. These projects will result in:
  • The creation of approximately 8,000 new, permanent beds in shelters, transitional, and supportive houses;
  • The construction, renovation, and enhancement of roughly 1000 sheltering facilities and support facilities, such as food banks, soup kitchens and drop-in centres;
  • The transfer of 50 federal surplus properties worth over $9 million, which will result in the creation of 214 transitional and affordable housing units; and
  • In addition to the Government of Canada investment, partnerships have leveraged over a half billion dollars towards the implementation of homelessness projects in Canada.


For more information on the Government of Canada’s National Homelessness Initiative, visit our Web site at www.homelessness.gc.ca.

For more information on the Prince Albert Community Action Plan on Homelessness and Housing and about the initial Government of Canada’s National Homelessness Initiative in Saskatchewan, please visit http://www.sk.hrdc-drhc.gc.ca/common/newsroom.shtml or see the attached backgrounders. The Community Plan is also available at http://www.citypa.ca/news/reports/index.asp.

For more information, contact:

Government of Canada: Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert: Name Minister Goodale’s Office (613) Peter Graham Office of Minister Fontana (819) 953-5646 Louise Zurowski Executive Director (306) 922-3202

BACKGROUNDER: PRINCE ALBERT COMMUNITY SERVICES CO-LOCATION FEASIBILITY STUDY

Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert is a community-based non-profit organization whose mandate is to promote and maintain the integrity of the family. The agency, which has been serving Prince Albert and surrounding area since 1985, is funded primarily by Saskatchewan Community Resources and Employment and the Diocese of Prince Albert.

Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert has formed a partnership with Prince Albert Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse and the YWCA of Prince Albert to support the Prince Albert Community Services Co-location Feasibility Study to determine if co-location of organizations will strengthen existing capacity, develop creative solutions and expand services to better meet the needs of clients who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless through a comprehensive continuum of support.

Catholic Family Services of Prince Albert received $20,400 through the Government of Canada’s National Homelessness Initiative to conduct the feasibility study that will examine the possibility of establishing a co-location facility with organizations who serve Prince Albert’s homeless population.