Essential Hamilton outreach service finds new, much-needed home

Hamilton’s Emergency and Community Services Committee heard on Friday (Dec. 6) that the Wesley Day Centre has finally found a new location.

Hamilton’s Emergency and Community Services Committee heard on Friday (Dec. 6) that the Wesley Day Centre has finally found a new location.

The details are scarce at the moment, but staff confirmed at the meeting Friday morning that a new location for the non-profit outreach organization that has long been housed on Ferguson in the city’s downtown, has been found.

The news came as the committee was poised to hear from a number of delegations respecting the issue of the Wesley Day Centre’s imminent closure in March 2020.

While the new location remains under wraps, an update on the Save the Wesley Day Centre’s blog posted in September said that they were working with the city to find a location that “can be a dedicated and accessible facility, ideally zoned as medical, and in the areas flanked by Queen Street (west), Barton Street (north), Ferguson Ave (east) and Main Street (south) and not on the proposed LRT route.”

Videos

Slide

Slide

Slide

Slide

Slide

The walk-in day centre offers a number of essential services for Hamilton’s most vulnerable populations.

The centre provides a health clinic, harm reduction groups and housing support, as well as warm meals and opportunities to socialize. The new location is expected to also offer a safe injection site, among other services.

The day centre has been at its current location, which has been leased from Wesley Community Homes, for more than two decades.

The reason for moving the day centre elsewhere is that Wesley Community Homes is hoping to develop more affordable housing units in the space occupied by the day centre.

Photo courtesy Wesley Urban Ministry’s Facebook page

EDS NOTE: A previous version of this story incorrectly identified Wesley Urban Ministries as the organization developing more affordable housing when in fact it is Wesley Community Homes. We apologize for the error.