Natasha Carvalho, executive director of the Medicine Hat Women's Shelter Society, pitched city council on Monday on finding for the shelter expansion and renovation. Eli J. Ridder/CHAT News

By Eli J. Ridder

CITY HALL

Medicine Hat women’s shelter pitches council on supporting critical construction project

Nov 4, 2024 | 7:47 PM

The Medicine Hat Women’s Shelter Society on Monday pitched council on financial support for a project they say is critical to continue protecting some of the community’s most vulnerable women and girls.

The organization is asking the city to contribute about $2.8 million towards the project, accounting for 33 per cent of the $8.5 million required to renovate and expand the Pheonix Safe House Emergency Shelter — work that started in November 2023 through a low-interest loan.

“Investing in our shelter is an investment in social justice,” shelter society executive Natasha Carvalho told council.

“By ensuring that individuals and their children have access to safe shelter, we can empower them to reclaim their lives, pursue education, contribute positively to society,” she added.

“This aligns with the broader community goals set up by the city yourselves, of recognizing that the success of our city’s most vulnerable is a critical measure of our success as a community.”

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Carvalho said her organization’s funding request also aligns with the second priority on council’s strategic plan shortlist it created in October to guide the rest of its term.

That priority calls for the city to “build a resilient and inclusive community”, something that Carvalho said her request works towards.

“We look forward to being able to collaborate with you to lead this provincial-municipal community urgent response you’ve been talking about,” Carvalho said, referencing the priority’s objective for “an urgent response to social disorder.”

The shelter’s funding request is already working its way through the city’s new non-profit capital grant funding model but Carvalho, at the end of a presentation on Family Violence Prevention Month on Monday, wanted to highlight it was a “need” not a “want” for the shelter.

Built over 25 years ago to host 11 beds, the building was providing 30 beds in the same footprint before construction.

A society official in May said they were going to municipalities, the province and the public for help to cover the remaining funding gap. In September, the shelter said it had started proposals with the City of Medicine Hat and Cypress County.

Carvalho said Monday that $2 million of the $8.5-million total has already been committed.

While council will not make a decision on the society’s ask until it comes forward after the formal city consultation process, several councillors and the mayor acknowledged the importance of the shelter’s work.

“It’s often difficult to manage the vast array of requests that come forward to council, as you know,” Knodel said.

“But…it’s easy to prioritize when you see the efforts of an organization being associated with survival and that’s what I see underpinning the work that you do.”

Coun. Cassi Hider, who also expressed her support for the shelter, suggested that Carvalho organize a tour for city council to see in-person the capital project they will be asked to fund.

Carvalho was optimistic after the society’s council presentation.

“They were really open to hearing what we had to say, so I really appreciated them being open to hearing that,” Carvahlo said as she and many of the society’s board members left the council chambers.

“I just hope that they understand the need for it…we’re an essential service, we can’t really go anywhere and we need to be here to provide that support.”

City council will consider several capital projects before finalizing the 2025-26 two-year budget in December.