The signs are up and it is now official: the Wor-Kin Shop has a new location for their Day Program.
The signs are up and it is now official: the Wor-Kin Shop has a new location for their Day Program. "We have received clear title to the property, which is located at 808 First Avenue NE, directly across from the entrance to Tatagwa View," said Andria Brady, executive director of the Wor-Kin Shop.
"We are very excited about the location and think that it will be an excellent spot to run our Day Program from," added Brady. The location is also close to the Tatagwa Parkway systems, the Weyburn Dog Park and the Therapeutic Animal Park.
"We will also retain the building that we are currently in," said Brady, referring to the location at 1720 East Avenue. Over at that facility will remain the wood shop, paper and cardboard recycling and the SARCAN depot.
One advantage of a new location for the Day Program is that the SARCAN depot will be able to expand over at 1720 East Avenue. "We continue to field complaints from customers about the limitations on the service provided due to lack of space in our customer receiving area," said Brady. "It is our hope that our long-awaited expansion will come to fruition in the year ahead. We find that during peak times, we are extremely crowded in our back area with electronics, paint and bulk orders taking up most of the space."
Last year, at the SARCAN depot, there was a significant increase in container volumes at the end of the fiscal year, with 7.78 million containers. Refundable deposits of almost $850,000 were paid out to their 28,407 customers. They are staffed by six full-time, three permanent part-time and several casual and student staff.
The SARCAN depot also received 5,330 litres of paint and 161,570 pounds of electronics.
"We are at the point, that in the last fiscal year we were only a couple of containers shy of reaching the status of extra large, so our depot should be a lot bigger," said Brady. The challenge for expanding the SARCAN depot is finding the right contractor for the work.
The Wor-Kin Shop has raised close to $150,000 towards the building of the new Day Program facility. Their goal is to reach $500,000, with the Ministry of Social Service already committing $1 million.
There is no firm date for a ground-breaking ceremony. "We are working with the Ministry of Social Services and the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation on the plans, the design, the layout and the functionality of the building for the new Day Program facility," said Brady.
"Our Day Program activities and supports went through major modifications in the past year, as we were in the second year of the pilot phase of the Day Program Funding Standard," said Brady.
"Programs are based on participant interests and goals defined through the Personal Program Planning process with the participants and their support team," added Brady. "Staff really had to be creative and think differently in order to meet some of the goals and objectives, and they have done extremely well."
Brady noted that during the Personal Program Planning process, many of the participants did voice their concerns about the noise in their current facility, which stresses the need for a new Day Program building.
"They note the lack of space, the crowded conditions, even the fact that if someone else is having a crisis that it effects everyone because there is no where to go," explained Brady.
"While we are heading towards more of a community-based program, we certainly can't have everyone out in the community all the time. For me, it is when the participants start voicing their displeasure that we know it is a critical need."
