People who want to use services at the new Saskatoon Tribal Council (STC) Wellness Centre will have to wait a little bit longer.

The launch of the temporary 50-bed homeless shelter, which was expected to open on Monday, has been delayed, the tribal council said in a media release on Tuesday.

The STC said that the centre cannot be opened until an inspection of the building's air ventilation system has been approved.

"We will follow all safety measures related to fire and health codes. We want to do this right," Tribal Chief Mark Arcand said in the release. "The Saskatoon Tribal Council believes that it is essential for our relatives and staff to be safe and this is a priority for us."

Last week, Saskatoon City Council voted unanimously in favour of leasing an empty city-owned office building to the tribal council to be used as a homeless shelter.

The tribal council plans on staffing the facility 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and will offer counselling, medical services, food and a warm place to stay.

The wellness centre was proposed after Saskatoon saw a sharp increase in the number of homeless people in the city. The increase is being blamed on everything from the COVID-19 pandemic to changes to the provincial social assistance program.

So far this winter, the Saskatoon Tribal Council's Saweyihtotan program, which helps homeless people find housing, firefighters, social workers and others have made 75 visits to homeless encampments in the city.

The tribal council did not give a date as to when the wellness centre will officially open. The lease on the building runs until the end of April.