The official Opposition and the Yukon government are again exchanging blame over the continuing problems near the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter.
“The Yukon Party official Opposition is asking Premier Ranj Pillai for an update regarding the review of Connective’s operations at the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter and across the Yukon, as directed by a motion passed in the Yukon Legislative Assembly on May 1, 2024,” the party stated in a new release issued Thursday.
“Last fall, the premier claimed the problems were outside the facility, and ‘inside the shelter there has been good work done.’ Despite this defence of his Liberal government’s actions, the coroner’s inquest in the spring of 2024 found major policy and training gaps inside the shelter and recommended a review. Amidst the ongoing Substance Use Health Emergency, the premier should be acting on this direction immediately.”
The two-week inquest examined the deaths of four women who had been using the shelter.
The Yukon Party said it’s “extremely concerned by the lack of progress to curb violent and criminal behaviour outside the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter and improve conditions in the downtown core of Whitehorse. Last fall, the premier admitted he should have taken the file over earlier from the minister of Health and Social Services. It has been almost nine months since the premier took over and, according to businesses, nothing has changed, and the so-called ruinous conditions remain.”
Businesses have again notified Pillai and the government about the ongoing “terrible” conditions, the party noted. “Businesses say downtown is well on its way to becoming a ‘boarded up ghost town.’”
Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon said it’s “clear that downtown Whitehorse businesses feel that they have nowhere else to turn. The premier, who personally took over this file from the minister, appears out of ideas that will yield results. As we head into the summer months, the premier needs to provide business owners with some hope that their businesses have a future in downtown Whitehorse.”
It didn’t take long for the government to fire back.
Jordan Owens, the director of cabinet communications, told The Yukon Star Thursday the government “plans to continue our public engagement by hosting another downtown community conversation, six months after implementing the Downtown Whitehorse Safety Response Action Plan.
“We want to engage directly with the community about our collective work to date and hear from the community about their needs and potential next steps. These meetings will be taking place over the next few weeks and will provide an opportunity to discuss ongoing concerns and ongoing actions.”
Invitations will be sent and advertised soon.
“With respect to the Yukon Party caucus specifically, it’s worth remembering that when he was Housing minister, Yukon Party MLA and de-facto deputy leader Brad Cathers set the territory back on its efforts to build affordable housing by deciding at the last minute to forego $13 million in federal funding and pull the plug on 75 affordable housing units to be built in Whitehorse, which has contributed significantly to homelessness here in the capital,” Owens said.
“The former Yukon Party government decided the location for the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter, which Brad Cathers recently acknowledged was a mistake,” she noted.
“The Yukon Party also recently voted against Budget 2024-25, which included more than $4 million to address the Substance Use Health Emergency this year as well as $15 million to address community safety.”
While the official Opposition can periodically issue news releases on the subject, Owens added, “they have no credibility when it comes to doing anything that would actually improve things for downtown Whitehorse residents or businesses.”
