Province explains why it won’t fund $1.37M to keep House of Hope from closing and displacing 45 previously homeless residents

Frontline agency House of Hope will be forced to shutter its 48 supportive housing units later this year. CTV’s Daryl Newcombe explains why.

Less than three years after opening its doors to Londoners escaping street level homelessness, House of Hope has announced it will be forced to close when its current funding runs out in November.

According to London Cares, the agency that operates House of Hope, the decision is the result of unsuccessful efforts to secure $1.37 million of ongoing provincial funding.

“House of Hope worked,” said Chris Moss, executive director of London Cares. “It demonstrated what is possible when organizations come together around people with the highest needs.

The closure affects 45 current residents and 24 staff.

“These are people with tri-morbidities, so physical health issues, mental health issues, and addiction issues,” explained Moss. “And during their time with us, they’ve been able to work on all of those pieces because we’ve wrapped all the care around them.”

London Cares has expressed gratitude to its partners who made house of hope possible, and will remain committed to working collaboratively with partners, governments, health care organizations, and the community to advocate for sustainable solutions.

A news release says the supportive units provided vulnerable people experiencing significant health and mental health challenges, chronic homelessness, high emergency department use with:

• 24/7 case management
• Health care and harm reduction supports
• Probation and parole support
• Family reunification pathways
• Life skills and housing stabilization
• Partnerships with St. Joseph’s, London InterCommunity Health Centre, Thames Valley Family Health Team, and others

“We started this program because there was a gap. Closing this program would bring the gap back to this community,” Moss warned.

In October 2023, London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) and London Cares partnered to establish 25 supportive housing spaces inside fully furnished apartments at 362 Dundas St. that offer comprehensive 24/7 health and social support services.

Building on early success, in March 2024 city hall redirected $2.7 million over two years to create additional highly supportive housing units at House of Hope, bringing the total number of units to 48.

In February, London Cares revealed the impact House of Hope has had in the community during its first 18 months of operation, including a 97 per cent drop in Emergency Department visits by its residents and 84 per cent fewer interactions with police.

Municipal politicians respond

“This is an exceptionally disappointing decision,” said Mayor Josh Morgan. “What we know about House of Hope is that it works. It helps people. It’s producing great numbers. It’s getting great value for money.”

Morgan added, “We’re continuing to create as many spaces as we possibly can in the city, and this is a really unfortunate step back.”

Downtown Coun. David Ferreira was shocked by the province’s decision, “My jaw’s to the floor, because that just means that more people are going to be out on the street. We see decisions like this come again and again. I would like to see the main goal to be to house people, get people off the street.”

Between now and November, London Cares hopes to find suitable accommodations for the current residents who are being displaced.

“We’re going to try to find them other spaces,” the mayor said. “We’ve got six months to work with. We know there’s turnover and transition through the different supportive housing systems we have.”

Coun. Ferreira wonders if last week’s court ruling prohibiting the eviction of a homeless encampment in Kitchener because the residents have no other place else to go, might somehow also apply to House of Hope.

“I’m no legal expert, but I do think that there’s a direct applicability when it comes to that Ontario Superior Court ruling,” he told CTV News.

London’s New Democrat MPPs respond

Local NDP MPPs issued a news release after the closure was announced on Monday.

“The province is washing its hands of responsibility while vulnerable Londoners are pushed back into instability because this government refused to fund what was clearly working,” stated London North Centre MPP Terence Kernaghan. “Why is Premier Ford choosing to put people back on the street while wasting taxpayer money at the same time?”

“This government is trying to pretend that everything is under control while cutting support for one of the few programs proven to help people with the highest needs,” said London West MPP Peggy Sattler.

MPP Teresa Armstrong added, ““House of Hope reduced pressure on shelters, hospitals, and emergency services while helping vulnerable people find stability and dignity. Instead of protecting valuable programs that work, this government continues to ignore the wellbeing of communities across this province and abandon people when they need support most.”

Statement from Minister Rob Flack

Late Monday afternoon, Michael Minzak, the spokesperson for Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and MPP for Elgin-Middlesex-London Rob Flack, issued the following statement:

“Our government is making historic investments while providing municipalities with the tools they need to ensure people have access to safe and secure accommodations, as well as the wraparound support they need. This includes investing $1.7 billion to improve access to supportive housing, as well as $654 million through the Homelessness Prevention Program, which helps municipalities deliver programs tailored to local needs, with flexible operating and capital funding.

This year, we are investing over $21.8 million in the City of London through the Homelessness Prevention Program, an increase of 63 per cent since 2022, which the city can use for emergency shelters, outreach, housing assistance, and the creation or operation of supportive housing, based on local needs.

This is in addition to the $560 million we are investing to build 29 homeless and addictions recovery treatment (HART) hubs across the province. The hub in London offers services including primary care, mental health services, supporting housing, and transition beds, among others. HART Hubs will also add supportive housing units, in addition to addiction recovery and treatment beds, helping thousands of people each year transition to more stable long-term housing.

Specific allocations of provincial funding, such as the Homelessness Prevention Program, are made by the municipality, not the province, to ensure local needs are addressed."