I had the pleasure Thursday of joining members of city council over the lunch hour for a tour of The Station, Indwell’s 45-unit supportive housing project on Queen Street that is in the process of welcoming tenants from the city’s by-name homeless list.
We had the opportunity to tour a couple of the apartments, one a studio-style unit and the second barrier-free.
More on the accommodation later, but first my conversation with Natasha Thuemler, Indwell’s regional manager in London.
We first met almost two years ago when touring Railway City Lofts, Indwell’s first project in St. Thomas consisting of 15 micro-apartments above the transit building on Talbot Street.
Owned by the city and operated by Indwell, the units are an example of welcoming supportive housing for individuals transitioning from homelessness and mental health challenges.

The obvious initial question on Thursday was to get a sense of what it means to her seeing tenants able to now say they have a home of their own.
“You watch a building go up and you see all the trades here and the number of people in the different sectors and it comes together to make a project like this possible.

“It’s so rewarding and really valuable to hand over those keys to someone to move in.”
As part of the city’s compassionate community strategy, in early 2021, St. Thomas entered into a memorandum of understanding with Indwell Community Homes to develop supportive housing projects.
Indwell is a Christian charity that has created supportive housing in several southern Ontario municipalities, including London, Hamilton, Woodstock, Cambridge and Simcoe.
Thuemler stresses Indwell’s values, “dignity, love and hope. We believe everyone has inherent dignity and deserving of love and we all hold out hope for whatever the future might hold for individuals.

“There are many who are one paycheque away, or life situation that catches us off guard and changes our whole life.”

“And we know that’s possible when there’s the assurance of somewhere to sleep and a place to call home.”
Something The Station will provide for 45 individuals.
Along with a permanent address.
“And even when they are connected to different community services, ‘Where can I find you? Oh, at my home.’
“That is really invaluable. There are many who are one paycheque away, or life situation that catches us off guard and changes our whole life.
“Affordability is really important so we keep our rents deeply affordable for individuals so that is not a barrier to having your basic needs being met.”
When asked when the units will be filled, Thuemler admitted, “Internally, we’re pretty ambitious and hope to have the building full by the end of September and it will depend on where people are currently at.
“And we’re just finalizing our full staff complement, so as soon as we get everybody onboard and trained, we’re ready to move quickly to make sure that these homes are filled.”
Once moved in, tenants can stay as long as they desire or if they feel confident they can now go it on their own, they can move to a new residence of their choosing.

“Where we continue to build more market-rent housing, we can’t ignore the other end of that housing spectrum. There needs to be that constant awareness and consideration as to how we meet everybody in the community’s needs.”

“We say we support people on their move-in as well if there is a move-out. So, if they are ready to make that transition, we work with the city or other local landlords on what opportunities might be available to them, wanting that to be a smooth transition.
“And excited for that transition.”
With The Station being Phase 2 of Indwell’s goal of providing 100 housing units, we asked Thuemler if plans are now in the works for Phase 3.
“There has been talk about Phase 3 and we talk about the spectrum of housing. There’s also the spectrum of supportive housing and so initially someone may need a more intense level of support and onsite presence and down the road they may not need that level of intensity.
“But value the assurance of being able to reach out to someone should they need it and so Indwell does offer some of that spectrum of supportive housing and we’re excited about the potential opportunity to bring that to St. Thomas.”

“A lot of people are often surprised that we are supportive housing when they’re new neighbours and we’ve been existing in the neighbourhood. And others talk about the value we add to the community and so that is a really positive experience. We do want to be very much part of the community.”

She agreed it is too far down the road to understand what future housing options may look like.
“But, we’re excited about any possibilities that may come.”
She added, “As other communities learn about the work we do, there is an appetite to explore if it’s working here, can we make it work in our community as well.
“Where we continue to build more market-rent housing, we can’t ignore the other end of that housing spectrum. There needs to be that constant awareness and consideration as to how we meet everybody in the community’s needs.”
As was the case with the Tiny Hope Project in St. Thomas, Indwell last week received notice it would not be the recipient of CMHC funding for a housing project in London.
“We are eager to move forward on that and so finding a way is part of the next steps. I think long-term, always talking with government at three levels to say these are priorities and we need to move forward on some really important initiatives and so how do we work together to make these things happen.
“That is an important next step.”
This underscores the importance of partnerships when it comes to so many initiatives, including housing.
“What do they say, if you want to go fast, go at it alone. But, if you want to go far, let’s do it together.
“And, if we want long-term, stable housing for years to come, we all have to work together to make that happen.”
Thuemler wrapped up the conversation as we remarked on the attractiveness of the structure and grounds.
“A lot of people are often surprised that we are supportive housing when they’re new neighbours and we’ve been existing in the neighbourhood.
“And others talk about the value we add to the community and so that is a really positive experience. We do want to be very much part of the community.”

ONCE YOU MOVE IN, THEN WHAT?

Our tour of The Station began in a small office inside the entrance from the rear parking lot where program manager Jessica Mostert-Thiessen took great pride in displaying what dignity, love and hope look like in action.

“Two or three times a day a staff member will be present to answer any questions, manage any concerns and also make referrals in-house to our staff or help get connected to certain things or do any unit maintenance.”
Julie Ryan, Indwell community engagement coordinator, previously had advised there will be about 10 staff in different roles including nurses, addiction support, food security, peer support and housing support workers.
The small office is also where “our security team comes overnight to supervise the building.”
Next, on to the common space for staff “to make sure our staff are really well equipped to serve and support our individuals.”
This area led into the kitchen, a space keenly anticipated by Mayor Joe Preston and which he described as “beautiful.”
Mostert-Thiessen explained, “this is where we do seven days a week, 60 hot meals. Dinner is served between 4:30 and 5 p.m. and residents are invited to come downstairs and grab their meal and we do it sort of family style.
“We lay out all the tables so it has a real community feel while people are enjoying their meals and we have a full-time food facilitator who creates these.
“And 15 meals get dropped off to our Railway City Lofts program. Good food is really important to us. Dignifying food is really important to us.

“Our food facilitator also runs programming, budgeting programs, taking people on walks to grocery stores to teach them how to budget well and some nutrition information.”
As for breakfast and lunch, residents are on their own, “however we support with things like accessing the food bank, learn how to grocery shop and budget as well as Grace Cafe offers breakfasts and lunches if they can’t access on their own.”
Residents can cook in their apartments which have fully outfitted kitchens with fridges, stoves and microwaves.
There is a nursing office with a medication room “where all staff are delegated for medication and administration duties and that means all staff can support our residents three or four times a day with medication administration.
“What we’ve noticed is a huge improvement in folks’ mental health and health stability when medications can be something we can just support with until they are able if ever, to manage on their own.
“And it makes a huge difference in stabilization and once we’re stabilized with our health and getting the meals we need and have a roof over our head and a door we can lock, that’s when questions like what goals do I have, what do I want to achieve, should I consider volunteering, should I get a cat can start to come to fruition.
Yes, residents are allowed pets, although there are expectations on the part of Indwell staff.
There is a laundry room so residents can do their coin-operated laundry and a meeting space where supports can do case management and case planning with the other external supports, which is so crucial.
Those external supports include the city, the CMHA and Talbot House which does recreation.
As for the apartment units themselves, they are surprisingly spacious with a large living area window.
They are fully furnished with a bed, sofa, television, a large supply of kitchen utensils and other necessities and accessories.
The bathroom includes a good-sized shower.
Each floor in the four-storey building has a common balcony on the west side with an attractive ground-level garden area.
More than one person on the tour remarked they could quite comfortably live in one of these units.
“We work to create an individualized plan for folks based on what they are looking for and supports they have identified they want,” stressed Ryan.
In November of last year, Danielle Neilson, the city’s Homelessness Prevention and Housing Programs Coordinator, pointed out to members of city council that “the solution to homelessness is housing and housing with supports. It is not an emergency shelter or responding to reports of encampments.”
The Station quite emphatically should become living proof of that.

Related posts:

‘The solution to homelessness is housing and housing with supports’ – Danielle Neilson

Ceremony on a vacant lot at 16 Queen Street in St. Thomas a case of ‘standing on the ground of compassion’

A BIT OF THIS AND A BIT OF THAT AND A BIT OF WISH-LISTING

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) is a non-profit organization that represents almost all of the province’s 444 municipal governments.
It promotes the value of municipal government as a vital and essential component of the provincial and federal political systems.
Their annual conference begins tomorrow (Sunday) and runs through Wednesday in London.
Attending the event and representing the city are Mayor Joe Preston, councillors Tara McCaulley and Steve Wookey along with city manager Sandra Datars Bere.
The conference provides an opportunity for the city reps to attend delegation meetings and advocate for provincial support from several ministries.

“Certainly with the growth in St. Thomas and the industrial growth with the Volkswagen factory coming, we are a lot more noticed in the last couple of years and we’re getting the ears of those we need on the projects we’re trying to do.”

This year, the city team will meet with the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Ministry of Transportation, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services and the Ministry of the Solicitor General.
According to a release from the city, “advocacy work will focus around resources to create new and augment existing community mental health supports, support for capital investments in affordable housing, increased support for inter-community transportation connections and initiatives, capital funding for new childcare spaces, investments in social assistance programs and administration, and support for legislative changes and funding to alleviate pressures faced by St. Thomas Police.”
To get a further sense of the city’s priorities, we chatted with Mayor Preston on Friday.
An ongoing priority is regional transit and Preston confirmed, “(London) Mayor (Josh) Morgan and I are also trying to have a conversation with the Minister of Transportation together on regional transportation, it’s still in the mix and we’re still pulling hard on it and with the addition of new industries in our area it’s a reason to continue the conversation.”

“We’re growing and we have across-the-board issues in jobs, in housing, in recreation, in transportation and we continue to try and bring them forward as smart growth. Getting them all and not just picking out one prime project and saying let’s get this one. We want to make sure we have the ear of the ministers on all of them.”

We had to ask whether these meetings with the ministers or ministry staff are productive and do you get a sympathetic ear.
“Yes and many of them even follow up afterward. There is staff at the meeting and they come back for more information.
“It’s networking, it’s a bit of negotiating and it’s a bit of wish-listing.
“Most of the municipalities in Ontario have similar priorities . . . so we have a lot of things in common.
“Certainly with the growth in St. Thomas and the industrial growth with the Volkswagen factory coming, we are a lot more noticed in the last couple of years and we’re getting the ears of those we need on the projects we’re trying to do.
“Wherever we can connect the economics of southern Ontario together for what we’re asking, there’s a far better awareness or paying attention to what we think would be some of the answers to the issues we have.
“We’re growing and we have across-the-board issues in jobs, in housing, in recreation, in transportation and we continue to try and bring them forward as smart growth.
“Getting them all and not just picking out one prime project and saying let’s get this one. We want to make sure we have the ear of the ministers on all of them.
“People know where St. Thomas is and what we do and some of the great things we have done and are moving forward and want to hear more.
“So, I love the conversations. I know that on the sidelines of AMO this week, I’ll have conversations with tens if not hundreds from across Ontario about how did you do this and what are we doing next.
“What’s the outlook for southern Ontario? It’s a great time to meet some of your peers and also have good conversations with ministers from the provincial government.”
We will connect with Preston after the AMO conference to determine the progress made and the outlook for the future, especially on the issue of regional transportation.

SINGLE VOTE OPPOSED TO SINGLE SOURCE

Last week we referenced the fire department’s need to acquire a specialized pumper truck to service the city’s new industrial park.
The estimated cost of the unit is $2.4 million and it is to be a single-source undertaking because of the lengthy delivery time, possibly as long as 36 months.
The matter came before council at Monday’s (Aug. 14) meeting for purchase approval.
Coun. Gary Clarke questioned the process and why it couldn’t go out for tendering as would be normal on similar purchases.
With production at the battery plant not expected until 2027, would this not provide sufficient time to proceed with the normal tender process?
That was the concern not only of Coun. Clarke but also Coun. Jeff Kohler.
When it came time to vote on the motion to authorize staff to move forward with a sole source procurement of an industrial pumper, Coun. Clarke stuck by his concerns about the lack of tendering and was the lone vote opposed.
As mentioned last week, $700,000 had been budgeted for the purpose and the difference will be identified “as part of the broader industrial development project.”
Important to keep track of what other items are shuffled off to this nebulous funding source and will it show up as a line item in future city budgets?

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And a reminder, I can be heard weekday afternoons as news anchor and reporter on 94.1 myFM in St. Thomas. As always, your comments and input are appreciated.