After years of work — and a multi-million-dollar fundraising campaign — Siloam Mission officially opened a new 54,000-square-foot expansion Wednesday, adding dozens of new beds and a separate area for women to the downtown Winnipeg homeless shelter.
The new Buhler Centre connects the shelter’s main facilities at 300 Princess St. to a new dining room and drop-in location on Stanley Street.
Work on the project got underway in January 2018 and was made possible through $19 million raised through the shelter’s Make Room capital campaign started the previous summer.
“In the midst of a challenging time, the opening of the Buhler Centre allows us to continue serving our city’s most vulnerable and prioritize safety,” said Siloam Mission CEO Jim Bell in a release.
Siloam said the expansion will see 43 new shelter beds added, with dedicated transitional space for women, as well as extra general-use space for other services and programs.
On Wednesday they said the new space also allows for an expanded health centre and more space for mental health, employment readiness and spiritual care supports.
The new beds bring the shelter’s total to 153, although due to COVID-19 social distancing precautions, capacity is currently limited to 112.
The fundraising campaign hit its goal in May, and included $3 million between the provincial and federal governments — with additional funds coming from the city of Winnipeg itself — $2.2 million from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, and another $3 million from Winnipeg-based philanthropists, Bonnie and John Buhler.
“Every year more men and women come to Siloam Mission for help,” said Garth Manness, chair of the Make Room campaign.
“We launched the campaign because Siloam Mission was reaching its capacity to help with the resources it had. But the timing of opening this expanded space is even more critical than we foresaw — Manitoba needs Siloam Mission and the services it provides now more than ever.”
Now that the expansion is officially open, Siloam says its next project will see 20 new supportive housing recovery units added to the third floor of the shelter’s existing building on Princess Street.
The units, funded in part through a $500,000 grant from the provincial government, are meant to help bridge the gap for people coming out of addictions treatment who otherwise wouldn’t have a home to return to.
The new recovery units are expected to open in the spring of 2021.
Founded in 1987, Siloam Mission is a Christian-based non-profit that provides emergency shelter, meals and clothing to Winnipeg’s homeless.
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