Despite some setbacks, Souls Harbour Rescue Mission still intends to construct a new building for Riverside Mission that will provide the community with dozens of new affordable housing suites.
The Regina-based organization merged with the Moose Jaw non-profit in 2019 and announced plans to build a 22-suite building at 212 and 218 River Street West. Construction was expected to start in 2020 and be completed by 2022.
Souls Harbour Rescue Mission (SHRM) had planned to demolish Riverside Mission’s current building on Manitoba Street West this fall and begin construction of the new building, but the City of Moose Jaw was conducting road work on River Street, which delayed the project, Joe Miller, SHRM executive director, explained.
The organization’s board then delayed the demolition and start of construction to March 2021 since it was becoming too late in the year to build.
“We still plan to build a community care centre,” Miller confirmed.
Miller has been excited about this project for the last couple of years, even before the amalgamation happened. He explained that he had a vision of what the new centre could look like and shared that idea with his board.
“I think it’s a real blessing for the City of Moose Jaw and the people of Moose Jaw. We’re very glad to be part of that,” he said. “For Souls Harbour to go into Moose Jaw and build a community care centre, I think it’s a great thing. It’s very exciting. I think a lot of people should be excited about it.”
New Building to Provide Additional Services
The new centre will have 30 suites of affordable housing, including six rooms dedicated to men going through addiction treatment. Riverside Mission will be given a bigger space to support clients. It will also receive a new kitchen, men’s shelter, and an expanded clothing giveaway program.
The building will also act as a food distribution centre for southern Saskatchewan, Miller said. SHRM has developed partnerships with companies that sell meat, vegetables and canned goods. The non-profit has already been able to share excess food with food banks in communities such as Swift Current, Moose Jaw and Estevan.
The centre will offer a combination of free-of-charge community offices and board rooms as well. Offices will be available to community organizations that help Riverside Mission support the men who live at the shelter. This means a mental health counsellor, a priest or pastor, and a nurse could work regularly on-site.
SHRM has $500,000 built up for this project. Miller is working on provincial and federal applications that could bring another $6 million to $8 million.
“We were going to build a much larger facility, but we’ve scaled that back a bit, just looked at the need more and reassessed,” he continued. “But a $6 (million) to $8 million building with all those services for Moose Jaw … will definitely be a benefit to the community and the people who live in Moose Jaw.”
SHRM encourages residents to take ownership of the new building and feel good about it since the organization can’t perform its work here without the community’s support, Miller said. He is hoping that “larger players” can also help with the cost.
Miller expressed his thanks to the community for supporting Riverside Mission over the years and noted SHRM is also excited to be part of the community.
