By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Should there be supportive housing or affordable housing at 110 Sandys St. in Chatham?
That’s the hotly debated question at the centre of a plan by Chatham-Kent to repurpose the Meadow Park nursing home into a municipally owned supportive housing complex.
At its May 11 meeting, C-K council approved a recommendation from staff to move ahead with a $500,000 tender from Architecttura Inc. to complete the design work needed to convert the nursing home into supportive housing units.
But it took a lengthy back-and-forth discussion on the matter in two different segments before the tender was approved. Led by South Kent. Coun. Ryan Doyle, several members of council spoke against using the site for supportive housing. The main concern, according to those opposed, is that it’s a poor location because of its close proximity to Ursuline College Chatham and the Chatham-Kent Women’s Centre.
“Since it is two or three doors down from a women’s shelter and backs onto a school, before we give the go-ahead, we should at least have a discussion about what the other options could be,” Doyle told council, adding the site would be better utilized as a Stage 2 recovery home/treatment centre.
But Doyle’s attempts to reopen the discussion and delay a decision on the tender fell short. Because the matter had already been brought before council twice, and Doyle didn’t vote on the prevailing side, a two-thirds vote was needed to put it on the floor. Doyle was unable to bring his motion to reconsider forward so Chatham Coun. Alysson Storey stepped up to launch the ask.
“This is a critical issue in Chatham-Kent,” Storey said, adding council should explore “new opportunities” with community partners that have arisen since the matter was last discussed in open council.
Later in the meeting, when the actual bid was debated, those “opportunities” created confusion among councillors around the horseshoe who didn’t know anything about it. It was alluded to that a private operator is interested in founding and operating a recovery home at no cost to the municipality, with 110 Sandys St. as a potential site. However, no names were revealed publicly.
In speaking to these so-called new possibilities, chief administrative officer Michael Duben told council the municipality has been approached by a “foundation” that has expressed interest in doing some work in Chatham-Kent.
“We haven’t had the opportunity yet to get all the details from them,” Duben said, adding he wasn’t aware there would be no cost to C-K.
The CAO said it’s his understanding the expression of interest comes from a faith-based group that relies heavily on peer support in dealing with substance abuse disorders.
Chatham-Kent purchased Meadow Park in 2024 for $1.7 million, with the goal of providing affordable/supportive housing. The seniors’ home is currently building a new facility on McNaughton Avenue West.
But other councillors spoke to the dire need of supportive housing, including Chatham councillors Brock McGregor and Marjorie Crew.
Supportive housing is a missing piece in the C-K’s homelessness continuum, McGregor explained, adding it will help get people out of encampments.
While acknowledging the need for treatment and recovery services for the addicted, McGregor said supportive housing is the missing link.
“If we ever want to remove encampments, a big component of that is affordable housing, supportive housing, transitional housing,” McGregor said. “And if we slow that process down, those encampments will grow and the issue will continue. We need to pursue both.”
In her comments Crew spoke in favour of the supportive housing option at 110 Sandys St., stating there will be supports for addicted people, albeit on an individualized basis.
“We need supportive housing and we need to move forward,” Crew stressed, adding she appreciated Doyle’s position and frustration. “If we want to get rid of encampments, we can’t keep skipping steps.”
After more discussion and questions to staff, Doyle brought forward a second motion to defer a decision to allow administration to further investigate the matter. That failed in a 9-9 tie vote. Ultimately, the original recommendation to proceed with the Archittectura Inc. bid passed 10 to 8.
Chatham Coun. Michael Bondy, who spoke against supportive housing at Meadow Park said the public needs to remember who voted in favour of it.
“Remember who voted for this when your property value plummets – like tomorrow morning,” Bondy said.
Post meeting, North Kent Coun. Rhonda Jubenville said she couldn’t understand why a decision on Meadow Park couldn’t be delayed pending the information about a potential operator.
“Putting supportive housing next to a school and a women’s shelter is not going to end well,” Jubenville said.
The location is about 450 metres from UCC and half a kilometre from the Women’s Centre.
