Stepping Stones Crisis Society new building 30% complete

The new Stepping Stones Crisis Society building construction.

It’s coming along real smoothly.

The new Stepping Stones Crisis Society building construction is a massive project, a 50,000 square foot, four-story building, that can accommodate double the number of clients — from 27 beds to 63 beds — they currently serve.

They are 30 per cent complete the new structure for helping those dealing with family and domestic violence, and have ambitious timelines of being done by July 2025.

“The team here has made amazing work and great progress,” Cindy Yang, director of strategic priorities, told Lakeland Connect. “We’ve got three floors up so far, and we still have one more floor to go before we’re finally moved in and completed, hopefully by next summer. It’s been a lot of work and a lot of amazing progress. We’re so encouraged by it.” 

Nails Enterprises Inc has been leading the way on site since the sodturning in July 2023.

The net zero building will integrate the three separate offices of Stepping Stones into one place, but also mitigate the turnaways due to lack of capacity, a problem exacerbated during the pandemic.

Millions in federal and provincial dollars have helped get them to this point, along with municipal support and sponsorships. They are still actively fundraising to reach their end goals of $15 million.

“We’re working hard to close a small funding gap, but we’re encouraged by the progress so far. We have a fantastic group of community members helping us close these gaps,” said Yang. 

“This community has been wonderfully supportive on many levels. We’ve had supportive community members and leaders. One of our goals with this project is to give back to the community. We’ve been sourcing local contractors and trades to provide more jobs. It’s been really exciting, and we’re so grateful for the support we’ve received from community members.”

Being in the community for 40 years, originally under the banner of the Dr. Margaret Savage Crisis Centre as a woman’s shelter, the team will keep their current facility operating until they are fully ready to transition to the new building.

In the first three months of 2024, 147 women and children were sheltered for a total of 1,705 bed nights. Their 24 hour help-line has been called 709 times and 348 outreach clients have been contacted.

Their phone number is 780-594-3353.

Watch: Cindy Yang updates community