YWCA Centre for Women and Families gets another funding boost

The YWCA Centre for Women and Families project is getting more support.

The Regina facility, which received $5 million from Gordon and Jill Rawlinson and their family in October and $1 million from Conexus Credit Union in November, got another $3 million from the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation on Thursday. The province had previously contributed $1 million to the facility.

“Our government is proud to provide further support to this important project,” Gene Makowsky, the provincial minister responsible for the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation, said in a release.

“This will connect women and children in vulnerable situations to a safe, stable and affordable place to live, as we continue to work with our valued partners at YWCA Regina to provide affordable housing to families in need.”

The total cost of the facility has been pegged at $63 million. The project received $33.9 million from the federal government through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund, and the City of Regina is providing the land, which was valued at $2 million.

The centre, which is set to be completed in 2024, is to provide 68 affordable housing units for women and children, as well as 40 emergency shelter spaces funded by the ministries of Social Services and Justice.

The building is to feature community multi-purpose spaces, access to drop-in supports and essential needs, communal kitchens, and indoor and outdoor play areas.

The centre also is to include a healing and ceremony lodge stewarded by Indigenous community partners to provide access to cultural support.

“We are incredibly thankful for this contribution from the Government of Saskatchewan. This is a clear investment and commitment to our province’s most vulnerable women and families for generations to come, ensuring long-term and sustainable solutions in addressing poverty and gender-based violence,” YWCA CEO Melissa Coomber-Bendtsen said in the release.

“When all levels of government step up to the table and invest in projects like the Centre for Women and Families, it is a clear indicator to our community that we can, and will work together for the betterment of our whole society.”