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Robert Wah-shee, from left, stands arm-in-arm with his son Francis Wah-shee, friends Leon Sewi, John Harrison and a man who asked not to be identified, outside the day shelter last month. - James Rubec/NNSL photo

SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A brief experiment to introduce shorter, summer hours at the Yellowknife day shelter has ended and regular hours return this week.

There had been recent reports of the shelter opening later and closing earlier than usual. Since it first opened for business in November 2009, the shelter has normally opened at 7 a.m. and closed at 7 p.m., seven days a week.

Lydia Bardak, executive director of the John Howard Society, which runs the shelter, explained last Tuesday that the new hours ­ 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. ­ over the previous two weeks were only a test.

"It was just an experiment to try out for a couple weeks," she said. "There have been times this summer when, with the beautiful weather, we've had fewer people staying inside the shelter.

"There's still the same number of people coming by, but they're spending less time indoors and more outside."

Bardak said the main reason the shelter adapted the 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. schedule in the first place was to give homeless people a place to go after they leave overnight shelters like the Salvation Army and before businesses open ­ then give them a place to stay or stop by during the day and after business hours until the other shelters open up again for dinner and for the night.

"We recognized that it was the sort of place that had to be open before 9 and after 5," she said. "And now we've confirmed that's the case."

Bardak said that, in general, about 70 people a day visit the day shelter, and staff are feeding as many as 40 people at mealtimes.

"So, overall, our numbers aren't down," she said.

The day shelter was welcomed by the city, the business community and police when it opened because it gives homeless people, people with addictions and even people who are intoxicated a safe place to go. And the shelter is also appreciated by those who use it.

Duane Taptuna, 31, who just arrived in Yellowknife from Kugluktuk, has been staying at the Salvation Army and spending time at the day shelter while he waits for new job to start.

"So far, so good," he said Wednesday of the temporary summer hours. "Everybody seems to be adjusting to them."

"It wasn't too bad, actually," said Wayne Goose, a volunteer at the shelter and member of the John Howard Society board.

"People usually come here at this time of year to take a break, or because they're already done drinking and are waiting to go back to the Salvation Army or women's shelter."

But two men ­ including Tim Allen, originally from Inuvik ­ said they'll also be happy when the shelter gets back to its 7 a.m. opening next week because some employers looking for casual labourers ­ for renovations or for moving ­ sometimes stop by the shelter in the morning to do some recruiting.

"I try to work every day," Allen said.

As for the business community, Yellowknife Chamber of Commerce executive director Tim Doyle said the jury is still out on whether the day shelter ­ funded as a three-year pilot project ­ is a success or a failure.

Doyle pointed to several recent incidents of violence downtown, the continued flight of retailers from the city centre and the brazen drinking, drug-taking and fighting that can be witnessed, including in the vicinity of the day shelter.

"Somebody has to do a study to see if Yellowknife is just the place that people come to in the summer to party," he said. "People come here to use our services, including the day shelter, because we have good services."

But Doyle stressed the chamber believes one key service Yellowknife is missing is a mental health- and addictions-treatment centre ­ in order to take a holistic approach to getting people off the street and cleaning up the city, calling on all three levels of government to step up and establish one.

Bardak said current levels of funding don't allow the day shelter to staff any kind of counselling.

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