It’s been years in the planning, but mental health services for the Wellington County area will be joined under one roof with a new $10-million, three-storey head office building here.
Fred Wagner, executive director for the Waterloo, Wellington, Dufferin branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), said the new facility is expected to be completed by next December.
He noted it will combine under one roof two separate buildings in the city that currently provide various mental health services.
“Next December we should be looking at a brand new building ready to roll,” Wagner said prior to the “Breaking ground, breaking stigma” ceremony Dec. 6.
It’s a plan that has been in the works since the Salvation Army building at 80 Waterloo Avenue was purchased six years ago. The plan, in the early stages, was to renovate the building.
Wagner said the organization, through the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network (LHIN), which oversees funding for CMHA, eventually saw the need for a new building and recently received $9.6 million from the provincial health ministry to construct it.
“We weren’t sure we’d ever see this,” Wagner told CMHA employees, clients and dignitaries at the ground breaking. “People who need mental health services deserve to have a new building.”
Wagner said the facility is centrally located to the city’s downtown and will present easy access to clients who often don’t have transportation.
Peter Kastner, CMHA board chairman, also noted the length of time the building has been in the planning stages and said he is “happy” construction was finalized.
LHIN chair Joan Fisk said the new facility will “make a difference in the lives of people” suffering from mental health issues.
Guelph Mayor Karen Farbridge noted the new facility will assist in the recent merger of Trellis Mental Health and Development Services with Canadian Mental Health Grand River, which formed the new CMHA branch.
“Putting the right facility together with your work can help the right people,” Farbridge said. “We need a community to support people who need help.”
Guelph MPP Liz Sandals said the process of finalizing construction has moved through several stages at the ministry level, including three different health ministers.
Originally the renovation cost was pegged at $4.3 million, Sandals said, but “The best solution was to knock this building down and start all over.”
The ministry, said Sandals, eventually came up with its $9.6 million contribution.
“This is just amazing,” she said of the new facility.
“It’s really about we need a better space so we can provide better service. It’s ultimately about better service.”
CMHA client Sarah Jones, who has accessed services for the past three years, said the new facility will focus “on making our community better.”
Client Nazra Shaw, a recent immigrant to Canada who suffers from mental health issues, said in addition to providing a wide range of services, the facility will also be able to handle the needs of immigrants through its immigrant services.
“Please use the service provided by CMHA,” she encouraged those suffering from mental health issues.
Demolition of the old building was expected to take place this week.
