Regional councillors updated on transition from CTS to HART hub

With the Region of Waterloo’s only consumption and treatment services (CTS) site set to close at the end of March, regional councillors have now received an update on the how the transition is going.

The new Homelessness Addictions Recovery Treatment (HART) hub will be co-led by Community Healthcaring Kitchener-Waterloo and House of Friendship.

The first step was to create a harm reduction working group that began looking to identify mitigation activity priorities and develop a harm reduction strategy. That involved meeting with community partners to find out which key partnerships and services the community needs in the HART hub.

Some of the mitigation efforts include adjusting and enhancing needle collection through the peer-based needle recovery program (WINS), ensuring there would be an adequate supply of naloxone through the Ontario Naloxone Program and making sure there is continued support for shelters.

Conversations have also been ongoing with police and paramedics.

Housing and Services Director with House of Friendship, Jennifer Scott, told the council committee about how the HART hub will navigate wrap-around services.

“It’s not located in one place. It’s not a brick and mortar location. However, the anchor site is at Community Healthcaring Kitchener-Waterloo at 44 Francis St. S.” she said. “We knew here in Waterloo, because of the richness of the partnerships in this community and the amazing services provided by a multitude of partners in a collaborative way in this community, that leveraging those partnerships at those places and spaces was the right way for us to go.”

How many of these satellite locations there will be remains to be seen.

During the question period, it was asked where the funding for the hub will come from. It was pointed out that the province will maintain the funding levels it was providing to CTS only that money will now got to HART hubs.

Back in August, the province announced it would be cutting funding to CTS and forcing the closure of any CTS sites within 200 meters of a school or licensed daycare centers. It set a deadline of March 31, 2025 to close the facilities and began accepting applications for HART hubs from communities that would be losing the CTS sites.