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The 38-bed stabilization unit, expanded from its original 20 beds, was created to house intoxicated people who have nowhere else to stay, keeping them out of jail cells and emergency departments.

It receives around $119,000 per year from the Saskatoon Health Region for two staff positions but operates at a loss, Windels said. The Lighthouse had asked the province for hundreds of thousands of dollars to make up the difference, and had been waiting for an answer since June, he said.

“If you think about it, it’s not just 9 to 5, Monday to Friday. That’s easy to fund. Stabilization is — at least it was — 24 hour, seven days a week, 365 days a year. So just the staffing alone adds up to a huge amount.”

The province’s refusal could mean a lot of open beds just when the weather is starting turn cold, he said.

“Intoxicated people and cold don’t mix well. There could be people that die. That’s the harsh reality.”

Windels took issue with the media note saying only five people had been able to make the transition to stable housing.

“I honestly don’t know where they got that from. We do have a housing locator — he housed over 60 people last year. Obviously they’re not all from the stabilization shelter, but they’re from the shelter system.”

He also questioned the funding review cited by the province. The only report he knows of showed that Lighthouse programs saved $21 for every $10 spent, he said.

Brandon Heistad, 22, who spoke to The StarPhoenix outside the building hoping to get in, said the Lighthouse was now denying people food and water unless they were staying there.