UPDATED: Alberta government to keep Edmonton navigation centre open, add one in Calgary

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the safety and well-being of homeless people in Edmonton and Calgary remains a top priority for the government. That is why the Alberta government will be keeping open the navigation and support centre for homeless people in Edmonton and add a second location in Calgary. “Enabling encampments is not compassion,” said Smith in a Tuesday press release. “It’s indifference to suffering.” Smith said the Alberta government will not turn its backs on vulnerable people across the province. By opening the navigation and support centre in Edmonton, she said it allowed it to look after vulnerable people. Additionally, she said keeping the centre open to continue offering a centralized place for vulnerable people to access numerous different services and supports “means more vulnerable Albertans can receive the help they need more easily.”In November, Smith ordered a cabinet level response to the escalating violence in homeless encampments. To eliminate dangerous encampments and meet the needs of vulnerable people, cabinet ordered the creation of the first navigation and support centre in January. To date, the Alberta government said encampments have been eliminated in Edmonton. It added more than 625 people have accessed the centre and more than 2,200 referrals and direct connections have been made to available services. As high-risk encampments were removed from Edmonton communities, the centre was the central co-ordination place for those most affected. The centre has been providing targeted support to vulnerable people by connecting them to income supports, shelter and housing options, identification, healthcare, mental health resources, and addiction treatment.Alberta Seniors, Community, and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon said the success of the centre “has allowed hundreds of people to leave encampments behind and see positive change in their lives.” “Encampments will never be the answer to solving homelessness,” said Nixon. “Having this range of services accessible under one roof makes that possible.”Alberta Mental Health and Addictions Minister Dan Williams said the government will not sit by as people suffer on the streets from homelessness and addictions. “Gang-run drug camps are no place for someone to call home, which is why we will continue to ensure this centre is available and giving people the support they need,” said Williams. The Alberta government pointed out a major benefit of the navigation centre model is the ability for people to be connected or referred to multiple supports and services when they access it. Of the connections made with community services, it said more than 210 people have been connected to housing programs, including affordable housing and rental supplements. It said more than 275 people have been connected to emergency shelter spaces and transitional and supportive housing.More than 260 people have been referred for health supports. More than 100 people have been connected to mental health and addiction services, including 30 who have started opioid agonist therapy. Service Alberta has issued more than 400 identification cards on site.Smith followed up by saying she will open navigation centres wherever the numbers warrant. “It does seem that there is some interest in Calgary on working with us on developing a navigation centre there,” she said. “It could be that in other mid communities that there is another approach that we can take.”Generally speaking, she said having a single point of access to multiple services is preferable. In mid-size cities, it could mean finding an agency to deputize to run a centre on the Alberta government’s behalf. Smith said in January weapons seized from a homeless encampment in Edmonton should leave people concerned. READ MORE: Smith says weapons discovery at Edmonton homeless camp highlights urgency“This is a sobering reminder that illegal encampments pose a significant risk to not only our most vulnerable, who are being preyed upon by organized crime, but also to the surrounding communities at large,” she said. .The Edmonton Police Service said it had recovered more than 60 various weapons, including swords, machetes, knives, axes and fake firearms, at an encampment in the Edmonton River Valley one week prior.

UPDATED: Alberta government to keep Edmonton navigation centre open, add one in Calgary

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