A Barrie facility to help women overcome addiction, which was initially expected to open this month, has hit a roadblock, but officials say the project is definitely still moving forward.
Cornerstone to Recovery, an addiction recovery support agency and recovery community serving York Region and the Greater Toronto Area, had initially planned on locating the 12-bed women’s residential recovery facility at 77 Tiffin St., at the intersection of Innisfil Street.
However, that is no longer the plan.
“Sadly, the sale of the Tiffin (Street) building didn’t go through… and it was very disappointing for all,” Coun. Natalie Harris, who has helped champion the local project, told BarrieToday.
Harris noted the project is still expected to go ahead, but she did not have any information on the current status of a new location.
Representatives from Cornerstone were not immediately available for comment when reached by BarrieToday on Friday.
Cornerstone’s mission is to support people impacted by addiction to achieve emotional, physical and spiritual wellness.
Last October, city council endorsed both the Cornerstone facility and an interest-free $400,000 loan to renovate a building for the centre’s Barrie operations.
The city also entered into a sole-source, two-year agreement, with an option to renew for an additional two years, with Cornerstone to place clothing bins at city facilities, or at mutually agreed upon locations on public land, for the sole purpose of funding its residential addiction recovery services.
In addition to its recovery and transitional housing beds, the centre will provide six months of addiction treatment, including return-to-work programs. The plan is to include a men’s addiction treatment centre and community space in the future.
The $400,000 loan to Cornerstone is funded from the city’s community benefit reserve, secured against the building and to be repaid in equal instalments, beginning in 2021, during a 20-year period. The loan will help subsidize the first three years of the program.
Around $3 million dollars has already been raised by outside donations toward the capital required for this project.
The Barrie facility will be staffed 24/7 by its counselling team members and programs will be for the unique needs of women — with trauma support and a case manager for survivors of trauma and/or human trafficking.
Cornerstone has said its cost for each residential guest is $15,000, and it asks each one to pay $7,500 for a three-month program.
