Unsheltered people in the Cobourg area looking to escape the cold will be able to access the new warming room at 310 Division St. in Cobourg beginning Wednesday (November 13).
After several special meetings involving municipal and county councils, the fire department, and the homeless shelter service provider, the pieces are now in place to open the warming room, Northumberland County announced on Tuesday.
The county said it has received confirmation from the Town of Cobourg that it has met the requirements of Cobourg’s emergency care establishments (ECE) bylaw, which was introduced by the town earlier this year. The unmet requirements ultimately delayed the warming room’s opening earlier in the fall.
The county said Northumberland and Transition House staff have made the final arrangements for staffing, security, and other provisions, and will open the doors to the new space at 6 p.m. on November 13.
“Our immediate goal is to get individuals in out of the cold,” said Northumberland County Warden Brian Ostrander in a statement. “We appreciate the Town of Cobourg’s hard work to help us get this facility operational as winter approaches.”
“We look forward to ongoing collaboration with the town, with our clients, partner agencies, and with residents to ensure successful integration of the shelter into the community.”
The warming room will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to provide people experiencing homelessness with a safe and warm place to rest, access to washroom, shower facilities and laundry, and a bite to eat.
The warming room is part of a larger transition of shelter and shelter services from Transition House’s current location on Chapel Street to Division Street.
Renovations remain underway at the Division Street location on the building’s higher floors to provide overnight accommodations for those in need, along with support services.
During a recent Northumberland County council meeting, councillors heard the renovations that would allow for overnight stays would likely continue into December.
As a result, during a recent meeting, Northumberland County council authorized spending up to $40,000 on additional motel rooms to accommodate homeless people in the area as the occupancy capacity was reached at the Chapel Street location after the number of beds permitted were reduced to align with new town requirements.
Ostrander said opening the warming room is a step in the right direction.
“This is an important milestone in our community’s ongoing efforts to provide modernized shelter services for those experiencing homelessness,” Ostrander said. “The opening of the warming space is a vital first step in creating a modern, multi-purpose shelter that will better meet community needs. We look forward to welcoming people to this new space.”
The Division Street location is expected to provide a range of services that includes the warming/cooling space, emergency shelter spaces, transitional housing, and supportive programs designed to help people “on their journey to life stabilization.”
According to a media release, renovation of the 35 emergency shelter spaces on the second and third floors of the building “are progressing well and are on track to open before the end of this year,” with transitional housing units on the fourth floor anticipated to be occupied by early 2025.
