One substance use death at the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter (WES) has been confirmed.

The death, which occurred earlier this year, follows the deaths of two women at the shelter in January 2022.

Substance use is believed to have been involved, and there will be an inquest at some point.

At a news conference held Thursday at the Jim Smith Building, two reports on the shelter were released.

Gigi McKee, the assistant regional director at B.C.-based Connective, which manages the Alexander Street facility, confirmed that one substance use-related death at the shelter is under investigation by the Yukon coroner’s office.

“We can confirm that there was one fatal overdose or substance use earlier this year,” McKee said

“But there is an investigation that’s being done for 2023 for substance use-related incidences.”

Asked what else she could say about the investigation, McKee replied, “I don’t think I have anything to share with that, actually. That will be with the coroner.”

The Yukon Coroner Services’ (YCS’) Heather Jones said, “I can confirm that YCS is investigating two deaths from WES which occurred in 2023. (One death occurred on-site at 405 Alexander Street and the other individual was transported to WGH, where death was declared ….)”

Jones added, “No further information will be released ‘about our investigations’ into these deaths at this time.

“However, as you are aware, YCS will be going to inquest on WES deaths later this year. We are in the process of appointing a presiding coroner and determining the scope of the inquest.

“We do not yet have a firm date, but all information leading up to the inquest, including date and scope, will become public as soon as it has been determined.”

Inquests are open to the public and the media.

Jones’ office has reported eight Yukon deaths from Apr. 7-27. They are believed to be related to substance use. Connective began managing the building in October 2022. CEO Mark Miller was asked whether the shelter’s policy of allowing intoxicated people on the premises (low-barrier policy) is under consideration.

“I can’t comment specifically on the policy but I can comment on – any death is a tragedy. I think to shift that focus, though, I would also want to highlight how many people perhaps have been saved because of the shelter services,” Miller said.

“… Harm reduction is one piece, prevention is one piece and the safety aspect is one piece. I can say that any death is a tragedy, but the fact that the shelter and shelter staff and community staff are able to assist keeping many people alive.

“The reality right now in this community and many communities, people are using drugs,” Miller said.

“There’s a toxic drug supply, in spite of warnings, in spite of knowledge. And, sadly, many of us in this room will have been touched by overdose and those pieces so I hope – I understand the narrative on people overdosing and dying is important.

“But I also think that narrative on people getting the services they need to stay alive while they can get to a better place, and hopefully, get treatment and work their way towards a better place, I think, is an important part of that narrative as well.”

According to a Yukon government press release, the House of Wolf & Associates report, A Path Forward, “assessed the lived experience of safety and perspective on community wellness through engagement with shelter clients, staff, key partners, local businesses and residents.”

The Vink Consulting report, Whitehorse Emergency Shelter Evaluation, “assessed operations at 405 Alexander through engagement with shelter guests, staff 
and stakeholders.”

The assembled dignitaries were later asked for an update on measures to appease nearby business owners who’ve experienced well-documented issues due to people hanging around the shelter.

The problems include public urination and sexual acts, needles and bottles strewn around businesses’ properties, and other behavioural issues – including businesses’ customers being harassed.

The business owners who’ve complained include Walter Streit of Alpine Bakery and Hans Otteli of Duffy’s Pets, situated right next to the shelter.

McKee attempted to answer the question first.

“Right now, we do work collaboratively with Walter and Hans … and connect with them regularly. So any concerns that they may have, they can bring forward to the leadership team and directly work with them.

“We are a 20-person-operated facility that is available to take calls at any time,” Miller added.

“And we’re also monitored with camera footage and such so that we can monitor what’s happening within the facility itself. But when it comes to individuals that are in the community and beyond, for 405 Alexander, we have to work collaboratively as a community to ensure that we are working together to be good neighbours.”

There’s only so much the organization can do, he added.

“And we do strive to have that good community relations with everyone and foster that as well with all the services that are accessing the facility,” Miller said.

Health and Social Services Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee was asked whose responsibility it is to take care of the surrounding area.

“We’ve all said many times today that this is about a collaboration and about the community issue,” she said.

“We have worked with the RCMP, with the City of Whitehorse, with Connective and CYFN and with the chamber of commerce over the last couple of years, to have meetings and to determine how we can all contribute to a solution for this complex problem,” the minister said.

“And we will, as I said, meet again next week with respect to presenting these reports and focusing on how we are going to move forward together, how each of those organizations can bring a piece of the puzzle because it’s not something anyone is going to be able to resolve themselves.”

A focus of the House of Wolf report was broader community safety, she noted, “and it will be a good roadmap going forward to consider those recommendations.”

Regarding long-term housing, the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter Evaluation report points out the facility is not as cost-effective as alternative solutions of providing longer-term shelter guests with housing.

The report said there is a $2.11 social return for every dollar invested in the shelter.

In comparison, the return for every dollar invested in the Housing First program is $2.90.

The reports states, “The Yukon Government and its partners should strive to increase investments in a range of housing, often along with supports, to more effectively serve homeless and street involved adults.

“This strategy would be particularly important for many of the 45 individuals who spent 90 or more nights at the shelter between October 2021 and September 2022.

“These individuals consumed a disproportionately large share of the bed nights at the shelter. If these individuals received housing as an alternative to shelter, the shelter would have only had an average occupancy of under seven people per night, rather than 40 people.”

One reporter asked how the cost benefit analysis in the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter Evaluation report was calculated.

Kaila deBoer, the territory’s director of social supports, said, “Assigning value to something like human life is a pretty much impossible thing … we’re assigning value to something that really is entirely invaluable.

“The loss of any human is massive,” deBoer said.

“And the impact that has through-out the entire community is really an arbitrary thing to put cost to.

“But it is an important thing just to understand how and where the shelter fits in our broader system and how that is impacting costs … even if it wasn’t cost-beneficial, necessarily, it is still a huge piece to be protecting people’s lives and the impacts that that has on their families, their friends, the community more broadly,” deBoer said.

“To the earlier questions around the low-barrier piece, one of the things that really comes up through the cost benefit analysis is how much having a low-barrier space is really adding value because we are supporting people to be at another stage and to be well today or well enough today, surviving today, and then be able to make further steps as time goes on, and improve and carry forward.”

After the press conference, Miller made a point of explaining to the Star how the low-barrier policy and client and community safety work together.

“(Regarding) the complexities of if an individual is turned away from the shelter and they’re in the neighbourhood, are there more challenges in the neighbourhood then, because that individual isn’t in the shelter?” deBoer asked.

“So it does serve a community safety aspect … I certainly sympathize with the local businesses and the impact on them, and working on these relationships will allow us to improve that over time.”

Regarding allowing the clients into the shelter when they’re under the influence of alcohol or drugs, Miller said, “Maybe they don’t go and freeze. Maybe they don’t go and overdose. It’s a very vulnerable lifestyle.”

Miller added, “Those are really challenging decisions for staff to make, and I think they approach it from a caring place, always, both caring for the community and 
the individuals.”

The Star will have more on the reports’ specifics next week.