TIMMINS - Talks about a new mental health and addiction treatment facility are being overshadowed by past failures, says Timmins' mayor.
For nearly two hours on Tuesday, Cochrane District Services Board (CDSB) director of health Jean Carriere and Canadian Mental Health Association Cochrane-Timiskaming executive director Paul Jalbert talked to Timmins council and fielded questions about the proposed Wellness Centre of Excellence (WCE).
The CDSB is the lead agency on the project and has applied to be one of the few new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) hubs in Ontario.
Questions about support for the facility — including the hospital's roll in the project — and the lack of trust in the CDSB, who is leading the project, highlighted the discussion.
There was also a recorded vote on a resolution saying the City of Timmins doesn't support the HART hub application or the location of the proposed facility. The vote was tied 4-4, which means it was defeated.
Having CDSB at the council table fulfilled a council request from September, when they asked for the WCE partners to explain the hub model, what services would be delivered, and the potential impacts on the neighbourhood.
The WCE is a proposed centralized service hub that hopes to offer primary care, addiction and mental health services, Indigenous-focused care, supportive housing with services, and life skill and employment training. It will not be an emergency shelter, offer harm reduction supplies or be a supervised consumption site.
Along with the presenters, the project partners in council chambers included Mushkegowuk Council, the Timmins Academic Family Health Team, and the Cochrane Temiskaming Resource Centre (CTRC).
Notably absent was the Timmins and District Hospital (TADH), who packed the gallery weeks ago to talk about a massive capital campaign to expand the emergency department and upgrade hospital equipment.
When the HART Hub application was submitted in October, Carriere said the hospital was the primary health provider, which is the agency the funding is transferred through.
The transfer agency is changing. A new organization to take on that role has not been decided, though there are several options with the partners at the table, said Carriere.
TimminsToday asked TADH last week if it's still a main partner in the project.
"TADH recognizes that Timmins, like many other communities in Ontario, suffers from homelessness, mental health, and addiction issues, and we’re grateful for the collaborative efforts of health and community-based partners working to combat these issues. TADH is committed to working together with health and social service partners to support the needs of the communities we serve, our patients and clients. The WCE proposal is led by CDSB. Any questions about the project should be directed to the CDSB," wrote Cynthia Stables, TADH senior advisor in an email.
In an email today, Carriere said the hospital continues to be a partner with the WCE planning team and is "one of the organizations identified to potentially provide services should our community be successful in receiving HART Hub funding."
The specific example given for TADH's potential role is providing in-patient and out-patient mental health and addiction services, such as the liver health program.
The proposed facility will be located at the Ramada Inn at 1800 Riverside Dr. in the city's west end, which the CDSB is buying.
The site was chosen without consultation with the community or considering other locations, said Coun. Rock Whissell, who represents the ward the project is located in.
After the only public meeting held on the project since it launched in early September, Whissell stepped down from the CDSB board.
“I have not heard anybody in favour of the location or in favour of (CDSB) being the ones organizing the lead on this project,” he said.
CDSB is asking for up to $6.3 million per year for three years and up to $1.8 million in one-time funding. Under the HART Hub model, $1.3 million of the $6.3 million annually would be specifically for supportive housing. Major capital costs for new or full building renovations are not eligible for funding.
“What I’m worried about is (CDSB) spent $11.7 million to purchase the property and we don’t have an exact number to bring that facility to the standards that the HART Hub would have,” said Whissell.
He questioned where the money to bring the building up to standards will come from.
“I think there’s a lot of homework that wasn’t done yet to prove that this building is financially stable for us to move into,” he said, noting that the last two building committees he's sat on — for the French health centre and the Golden Manor — the aging buildings were torn down because they weren't worth repairing.
Carriere said that the CDSB has some capital funding reserved for renovations and the building is being purchased with all its furnishings. There's also the $1.8 million request in the HART Hub application.
“There’s just over $3 million of total money available to be able to make the changes that are required to the facility,” he said.
'Stand on their own merit'
HART Hubs are a new direction for the province.
When Ontario backed away from supporting supervised consumption sites, it pivoted to treatment facilities and launched the HART hub approach at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference in August. The application deadline was in October. There is no timeframe for when approved projects will be announced, though the expectation is that the facilities are operating by March 2025.
At Tuesday's meeting, there was frustration shared over the seven-week turnaround time between the launch and application deadline.
The presentation also outlined how the Timmins WCE has been in the works for years. In 2020, the hospital and community partners made a $20 million submission for it, with a funding application submitted in December 2023.
Carriere told council on Tuesday that for eight months before the HART Hub announcement, a team had been meeting regularly to develop the WCE.
At AMO in August, Timmins Mayor Michelle Boileau told reporters that the city was already working on an application for a regional wellness centre that would be similar to the HART hub model ahead of the announcement, following hints from the associate minister of mental health and addictions.
The day before Minister of Health Sylvia Jones launched HART hubs, Boileau said the high-level WCE proposal was presented to Timmins MPP George Pirie, Jones, Tibollo, and other ministers. All of the people in that room, said Boileau, knew the Ramada Inn was the location.
“I would say that there was encouragement on behalf of our local MPP and the province to move forward with an application with that location. That being said, I can’t speak to whether or not that opinion’s changed,” she said.
Carriere also said that Pirie supports the application.
"He’s been very clear on that and he’s said it publicly,” Carriere said, adding he hasn't talked to Pirie about the location itself.
TimminsToday reached out to Pirie to confirm his support for the project and its location.
"Minister Pirie supports our government’s decision to invest in HART Hubs, however, local applications will need to stand on their own merit. As this is part of an ongoing application review process it would be inappropriate to comment further," reads a statement from Pirie's office.
Lack of trust
One of the biggest issues with CDSB and city council is trust, said Coun. Steve Black.
He was mayor when the original Living Space opened on Cedar Street North across from city hall. It was pitched as a space dedicated to ending chronic homelessness, with emergency shelter beds, a service hub and transitional apartments.
“Unfortunately the past couple of years have not been on our side and while I agree the all-in-one centre with all of the service providers being present and on-site and supporting services is the ideal concept. That’s what that building across the street was supposed to be,” said Black, pointing to the original site of the emergency shelter.
Those partners, he said, "never showed up in the degree they were supposed to."
When Living Space was relocated to Spruce Street South, the community wasn't consulted in advance. Moving Living Space outside of the residential area is still being considered, to Black's understanding.
“I don’t blame a single resident across our community for being weary or untrusting that this isn’t going to roll out to be what we’re saying it’s supposed to be and that’s the biggest challenge we face," he said.
To wrap up the discussion, Boileau talked about her family.
Two of her immediate family members received treatment in southern Ontario. As part of their recovery journey, she said the needed aftercare locally and were able to access the supports and services needed.
"But my family recognizes that that’s not the case for many people in our community," she said.
When she broached the comments about lack of trust and partners being "mischaracterized", it sparked outrage from some members.
"So I would like to apologize on behalf of council to the agencies who might have been labelled as being an agency that can’t be trusted just by being associated to this project,” she said.
Black interjected, saying it was "out of line".
“What we said is there is a lack of trust in the community and it’s not one agency, there was a dozen partners that were supposed to be in that facility that it never came to be what it was presented at when it was at that time,” he said, referring to the original Living Space project.
“I apologize, I’ll walk back my comment and I’ll say then that I find it unfortunate that this project is being overshadowed by initiatives that failed before it,” Boileau finished.
