Woodstock Hospital to apply to operate HART hub

Woodstock hopes for HART hub Woodstock officials hope to open one of the provincial government's proposed homelessness and addictions hubs. Bryan Bicknell reports.

The city of Woodstock could become home to one of the provincial government’s proposed HART (Homeless, Addiction, Recovery, Treatment) hubs. Woodstock Hospital has confirmed to CTV News that it will apply to operate one of the 19 proposed locations across the province.

That follows Woodstock city council’s decision last fall to reject a proposed supervised consumption site for the city. Mayor Jerry Acchione says he believes the HART hub model is a much better fit for Woodstock.

“We, as council, identified this very early on in our strategic plan, that we wanted some kind of campus of services, so I really liked the idea of a HART hub. It’s the same basic idea that the province is talking about,” explained Acchione.

Last month the province announced a $378 million plan to open 19 HART hubs, which would offer mental and addiction help, along with social services, beds, and supportive housing.

In a statement to CTV News, Woodstock Hospital CEO Perry Lang confirmed the hospital will apply to operate a HART hub.

“Woodstock Hospital is actively collaborating with the Oxford Ontario Health Team and community providers to explore what a HART Hub could look like for Woodstock and Oxford County. We are working towards submitting our intent to apply for a HART Hub by the September 20th deadline, with a plan to submit a full proposal to the provincial government by October 18th. We look forward to working with our partners to enhance mental health and addiction support for our community.”

The homelessness crisis also taking a financial toll on local taxpayers. Earlier this month the city of Woodstock took down an abandoned homeless encampment close to a rail line at the south end of Clarke Street at a cost of $100,000. It was one of six encampments that have been cleaned up so far this year, but there are dozens more scattered throughout the city.

Woodstock council has earmarked an additional $100,000 to use for further encampment cleanups.

“With the cost of cleanups coming in as high as they are right now, it’s a serious concern on funding,” said Acchione.