Community support centre The Hub faces uncertain future

The Hub, a vital drop-in support centre for the homeless community in Hamilton is facing an uncertain future. The Hub is up for sale and the centre’s executive director says she can only hope whoever buys the property will lease it back out to them, so they can keep running. The centre says it needs to keep running because there’s both a housing and homelessness crisis in the city. Robert Walker, a Hamilton resident who lives on the street says centres like The Hub are essential for their survival. “You’re standing in my living room right now. I’m on the streets,” Walker says. He is currently a street resident who has lived and worked in Hamilton his whole life before losing his home. Walker says when he lost his home he had nowhere to go, and visits to the Cathedral Cafe have saved his life. “You don’t feel like you’re homeless or an outcast. You feel like you’re part of the family. It’s actually a part of my survival. Daily. And I thank them for that,” says Walker. The Cathedral Cafe is a collaboration between Christ’s Church Cathedral and St. Matthew’s House. City funding for their drop-in centre was supposed to end on Mar. 31 but it says support has since been extended. “People who are disconnected, living outside, they want to come in and get connected. Four months later, pretty much, we’ve seen 10-thousand people come through our doors, which is a very significant number, in a short period of time,” says Renée Wetselaar the St. Matthew’s House Executive Director. However, some other drop-in centres, like The Hub, are facing an uncertain future because their building has been put up for sale. Jennifer Bonner, the Executive Director of The Hub, says “we met with a couple of developers who were looking at the building early on, and there was some suggestion that they could lease it back to us.” The Hub says it also does not accept city funding for its drop-in program. The building is owned by Philpott Memorial Church. The lead pastor tells CHCH News the building was put up for sale to help finance the cost of relocating the church at 84 York Boulevard to 160 King St. There’s no word yet on the status of the sale but Executive Director Bonner says she hopes whoever buys it, will use it to service the community. “Where are people going to go? It’s not going to go away, so we need to be able to provide those supports, those referrals, those connection pieces to people so they can survive out here for a while,” says Bonner. Walker says support is vital, “these people, they keep you going and moving forward, and they give you a positive outlook on your tomorrow.” The Hub provides various services throughout the day and can serve upwards of 200 people a night for their drop-in program.