Saskatoon council votes to move new drop-in centre despite community concerns

A 7-4 vote by Saskatoon’s city council in favour of buying a building at 130 Idylwyld Drive for more than $1.6 million approved the relocation of the homeless drop-in centre on Avenue C.

Councilors Randy Donauer, Bev Dubois, Troy Davies and Scott Ford voted against the proposal during a city council meeting on Wed, Feb. 25.

The Idylwyld site was brought forward by city administration as an alternative to the current drop-in centre next to the Salvation Army Crossroads shelter at 325 Avenue C South.

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During Wednesday’s meeting, about a half-dozen speakers addressed council to ask that an alternative location be considered. Many cited safety concerns, including optometrists Dr. Kristine Wilkinson and Dr. Sheryl Piteau, business partners who own Prairie Optometry, just one door away from the future drop-in centre.

“My husband and I purchased this property last year, 2025 August 1st, because we believed in the council’s vision for the downtown revitalization,” Wilkinson said, speaking to council.

“Had a drop in shelter or a homeless shelter been operating two doors down at that time, we would not have purchased this property or invested over $200,000 in tenant improvements and renovations for our clinic.”

Wilkinson echoed the Downtown BID’s previous contention that local business owners had not been given much advance notice of the city’s intention or plans for the location.

“With all due respect… my husband and I are now asking ourselves were we right to place our faith and money in this city’s plan for this particular part of Idylwyld,” she said.

Dr. Sheryl Piteau, echoed Wilkinson’s sentiments and told council that she’s concerned not only for their business, but also about the new location’s proximity to a local daycare.

Tamara Bowman, Metric Design owner, told councilors she that her business is located one block away. Bowman expressed fear for her all-female staff, having dealt with vandalism, break- ins and other issues in the area, already.

“The fear is real and as a business owner, I pay the repairs, the cleanup, the insurance, the time, the disruption, the stress – it all adds up, and it’s exhausting,” Bowman said. “The wrong location is not compassionate.”

Coun. Bev Dubois called the decision to purchase the property “rushed,” and said she felt the due diligence hadn’t been done.

“It’s been such a short timeline that it wasn’t possible to contact all of the (affected) businesses,” she said.

Coun. Troy Davies told council he received concerns both about the Avenue C drop in location and on the Idylwyld location.

“So for me, there’s no clear path today as to that this is a better solution, so for me, I can’t support this today,” he said.

Mayor Cynthia Block said none of it was a “perfect” solution, but there was an “urgent” situation that called for action.

“I view this as an opportunity to be able to take a little bit of control as a community about when and how we support people who are unhoused in our community,” she said, noting that not having any location to help was even worse.

According to a report from administration, the Avenue C South location will remain available until the end of 2026, or until such time the Idylwyld property is able to open, whichever occurs first.

At this time, the closing date for the property purchase is March 20th, 2026. The city will then enter into a below-market lease the province, which will then lease it to Saskatoon Tribal Council to run the drop-in centre.