Midhurst/January 8, 2025 – The County of Simcoe applauds the recent provincial announcement for the Shelter Expansion / Encampment Response Initiative Funding and to top up the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit (COHB), increasing the flow of individuals from homelessness into housing. The County believes this funding will help increase efforts to move residents who have been living “rough”, in encampments, or staying in shelters to more stable housing outcomes.
Homelessness remains an ongoing challenge across the region and in communities across Ontario, but it is a challenge that the County of Simcoe is committed to addressing by finding new and innovative solutions and by providing ongoing supports and services. The County’s Housing and Homelessness Services team works tirelessly every day to support people experiencing homelessness, who are unsheltered or who are staying in temporary shelters, to move to permanent housing.
Going forward, the County has pledged to continue its commitment to support unsheltered people living in encampments and in shelters to successfully transition to safe and stable housing. Our commitment to continue optimizing use of shelter spaces ensures the effective flow into permanent stable housing and creates additional stability within the community for individuals living unhoused.
Since launching its 10-point Homelessness Prevention Strategy in 2023, the County has been making significant investments and enhancements to social services programs and supports in cities of Barrie and Orillia and in our member municipalities across Simcoe County. These significant investments include the purchase of four modular facilities to allow unhoused individuals greater access to rapid rehousing programming and, in turn, permanently free up much-needed shelter beds for those living outside.
Within this 10-point plan, the pillars created include improving safety and well-being, creating easier ways to access services, enhancing community shelter services and standards, and finding new opportunities. This added funding has the potential to bolster these supports across our communities.
Some of the most recent highlights of the 10-point plan include:
- Two active SRRP programs with two more planned to open in 2025, supporting 55 transitional spaces across the County
- since November 2024, the County has begun permanently transitioning 47 seniors (55+) out of emergency shelters and into assisted living programs and rapid rehousing programs
- 68 overnight warming spaces and an additional 30 daytime spaces created in 2024/2025 to support unhoused individuals during the coldest months of the year
- opened a new County-owned warming centre at 445 Blake Street in Barrie
- Alternative Space Activation, introduced last winter, rapidly creates approximately 110 spaces in our emergency shelter locations when the weather drops below -10 degrees Celsius
- Centralized the Motel Voucher Program through Community Connections’ 211 services, allowing spaces to expand dynamically as needed
This is just one more way that the County is #BuildingUp our communities. For updates on how the County of Simcoe is investing in our communities, visit simcoe.ca/BuildingUp.
About the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit
The Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit (COHB) increases affordability of rental housing in Ontario by providing portable housing benefits directly to households in need that are on, or eligible to be on, a social housing waiting list and to households in financial need living in Community Housing.
About the County’s 10-point Homelessness Prevention Strategy
The plan provides a strong, data-driven strategy to help vulnerable residents and our communities. It includes considerable added investment, enhancements, and support for the unhoused population in our communities.
The plan takes a collaborative approach to building up communities, service providers, the business community, and residents. Through this strategy, the County continues to work collaboratively with partners and municipalities to continue to prevent and end chronic homelessness. For further details and ongoing updates to the homelessness prevention plan, visit simcoe.ca/HomelessnessSystem.
About the County of Simcoe
The County of Simcoe is composed of sixteen member municipalities and provides crucial public services to County residents in addition to providing paramedic and social services to the separated cities of Barrie and Orillia. Visit our website at simcoe.ca.
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