Modular Bridge Housing

In September 2024, City Council voted to extend the stay of the Modular Bridge Housing Community project on Wolfe Street, beyond the originally planned deadline of November 2025. The project remains contingent on ongoing provincial funding, and the City not needing the City lot for other services.

The City of Peterborough remains committed to finding long-term solutions for affordable housing while acknowledging that moving the cabins would require significant financial and logistical considerations. The success of the site will continue to be monitored through the evaluation. Early results are shared in the Appendix to this report:

Modular Bridge Housing Community Next Steps, Report CSSS24-018

AMO Media Release

Ottawa, Ontario, August 20, 2024 – The Peter J. Marshall Innovation Award Jury presented its highest award to the City of Peterborough for its Modular Bridge Housing Community project. The award was presented to Mayor Jeff Leal at the 2024 AMO Conference in Ottawa.

The transitional housing project was spearheaded by the City in May 2023 to address a long-term encampment in downtown Peterborough. In just six months, the City built 50 modular homes, shared washroom facilities, and a central service hub, thanks to funding through the provincial Homelessness Prevention Program.

Engagement with encampment residents was key to the project’s success. Community outreach workers gathered input from 75 people who lived in the encampment to ensure the modular home community would fit their needs. Considerations included everything from site design and location to security, operations and pet policies.

The Peterborough Modular Bridge Housing Community was built at the original encampment site. During construction residents were moved to a vacant parking lot across the street to the City’s first temporary sanctioned encampment.

By November of 2023, the first residents moved into their new modular homes. The community had a 98 per cent move-in rate for the first 50 people who were offered units. This is not typical for transitional housing programs, which normally see a 40 to 60 per cent move-in rate.

Within the first six months of operation, four people acquired jobs, one person moved into permanent housing, and there was a 90 per cent reduction in emergency service calls compared to when the site operated as an encampment. Staff have also reported significant improvements in the mental and physical health of the residents.

“I am incredibly proud that Peterborough’s transitional housing project has been recognized with the prestigious Peter J. Marshall 2024 Municipal Innovation Award. This award is a testament to our city's commitment to addressing homelessness with compassion, creativity, and a focus on practical solutions. As a Council, we knew we had to move beyond the natural tendency to stop when faced with an overwhelmingly complex challenge like homelessness. We knew we had to pick a lane. We learned from the experiences of others and our professional staff delivered this project with urgency and expertise.

Municipalities have shown they can innovate to create lasting positive change in our communities. I’m proud of the decisive, bold, caring approach that we have taken."
- Peterborough Mayor Jeff Leal

“The modular home program at Wolfe St. is a great example of a municipality thinking outside of the box to properly use the Homelessness Prevention Program to reduce homelessness in Peterborough’s vulnerable community.”
- Dave Smith, Member of Provincial Parliament for Peterborough-Kawartha

The P.J. Marshall Award is an annual competition to acknowledge municipalities who have had creativity and success in implementing new, innovative ways of serving the public. It is sponsored by AMO, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks & Treasurers of Ontario, the Canadian Council for Public Private Partnerships, the Municipal Finance Officers’ Association, and the Ontario Municipal Administrators’ Association.

https://www.amo.on.ca/policy/city-peterborough-receives-municipal-innovation-award

The City of Peterborough’s new Modular Bridge Housing Community, which consists of 50 individual modular units, a washroom/shower facility and a service hub for support agencies, is now providing homes for people who were experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

Many positive impacts of the stability and security of the modular home initiative are already being observed in the first few weeks of occupancy in January, 2024.

• Staff are noticing a marked difference in the mental health of several residents.
• Many residents are making positive social connections with other residents as well as staff from Elizabeth Fry and other support agencies.
• Several residents are reconnecting with family members. Residents are reporting that the safety of a locked door is making a difference to their sleep and how freeing it is to walk around without having to carry or worry about belongings, as they are locked in their unit on site.
• The community is a place of pride for many, with many residents setting up, personalizing their unit and making it into their home
• Having a stable home is allowing for many residents to start looking ahead, set personal goals and start working towards them. Success by residents has already been observed with pursuing and securing employment, working towards stabilizing medical conditions, personal development and life stabilization.

“Many of the residents in the new community have lived unsheltered for extended periods and have complex situations related to lived experience, mental health and substance use. Each individual will walk their own path and there will be ups and downs. My sincere thanks to our community partners, especially staff at Elizabeth Fry, for providing support and respecting the individual needs of the residents,” said Councillor Alex Bierk, Homelessness Portfolio Vice Chair.

“The Modular Bridge Housing Community is a new approach that is thoughtfully planned with the residents in mind. The units are well-built, and the community has a framework in place to offer a lot of structure, support and autonomy for residents. I’m pleased to see positive impacts of the Modular Bridge Housing Community in these early days, and excited about this project as well as the numerous other housing projects the City is undertaking,” said Councillor Keith Riel, City Council’s Homelessness Portfolio Chair.

Peterborough, ON – The City of Peterborough marked the completion of construction on the Modular Bridge Housing Community, which will soon provide shelter for 50 people who are currently experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

“These units are a new way to help some of the most vulnerable people in our community – a way to provide shelter for people who are homelessness and either cannot or will not for various reasons access our other shelter and housing programs,” said Councillor Keith Riel, City Council’s Homelessness Portfolio Chair.

“As the site gets ready for people to move in, I feel a sense of relief and hopefulness. Touring the units, they are well-built, warm, and thoughtfully planned. The community has a framework in place to offer a lot of structure, support and autonomy for residents,” said Councillor Alex Bierk, Homelessness Portfolio Vice Chair. “On site, there will be 24/7 support and resources to meet a complex set of needs. In less than a year, we have come a very long way. It’s important to recognize the progress we’ve made since last winter.”

Before residents start moving into the new units within the next couple of weeks, tours of the site are being offered to residents who live in the neighbourhood around the Wolfe Street site and community agencies that provide support services for people experiencing homelessness.

When Council approved the project in May, the expectation was that people would move into the units before winter as part of a new enhanced winter response plan for homelessness, which also includes a new winter overnight drop in space that will be operated by One City at the Trinity Centre on Reid Street.

On the Wolfe Street site for the Modular Bridge Housing Community, there will be a service hub to support the residents to access available services and staff support on site 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Elizabeth Fry Society will operate the site on behalf of the City.

The Modular Bridge Housing Community operations will be funded using provincial funding from the Homelessness Prevention Program.

Each of the 50 units has a heating and cooling appliance. The units are furnished with bed frames, bed mattresses, bedding, a mini fridge, shelving, and storage space. Residents will also be supplied with dressers, chairs, laundry baskets, cutlery, night stands and lamps.

Selection of the individuals who were offered Modular Bridge Housing Community units was done through a collaborative process between the City of Peterborough, Elizabeth Fry Society and Fourcast.

Outreach workers have been regularly engaging with people who are experiencing homelessness, including individuals who are living in the encampment on Wolfe Street, to offer assistance and to share information on the new homelessness services.

Other background

• The City’s emergency shelter network, operated by community partner agencies, offers 102 shelter beds, including 30 beds at the overflow shelter bed program. When the new winter overnight drop-in space operated by One City at the Trinity Centre on Reid Street opens, the overflow shelter bed program will be closed with the service transferring to the One City service. There was about 24 beds available each night at the overflow shelter bed program in October.

In the coming days, 50 people experiencing homelessness who indicated that they would like to live in the new Modular Bridge Housing community will be told that they have been selected for one of the units.

Social Services outreach workers and the organization that is expected to operate the site, the Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough, will speak to each of the prospective tenants to confirm their intention to move into the units once they are installed.

Construction and installation are expected to start on the Rehill Parking Lot property on Wolfe Street in September with occupancy in the fall.

Throughout the summer, outreach workers have been engaging with people who are experiencing homelessness and who are living on the property to share information, offer assistance with the planned changes, and start coordinating the transition of individuals into the new modular bridge housing.

The Modular Bridge Housing project uses modular units to provide supportive temporary housing for people who are unsheltered with the goal of assisting them to move into more permanent housing.

Selection of the individuals who will receive a Modular Bridge Housing unit is being done through a collaborative process between Elizabeth Fry Society and the City of Peterborough.

One City, which is a community agency that provides services to people experiencing homelessness, and FourCAST, which is a community-based addiction treatment provider, were consulted in the development of the process and will provide ongoing services to individuals.

The selection criteria developed in consultation with the community agencies considers:

• each individual’s specific needs;
• the barriers they may face accessing other shelter options;
• the acuity of their needs;
• a standardized housing assessment tool; and
• information about where the individual currently lives.

Modular housing is an important tool in the City’s overall strategy to end chronic homelessness and complements other actions by the City.

Working with Elizabeth Fry Society to confirm tenants for each of the 50 units is the next major step in the project, said Councillor Alex Bierk and Councillor Keith Riel, the Housing and Homelessness portfolio chairs on City Council.

“We’re providing a new housing option for people who are experiencing homelessness. There’s certainly a sense of urgency to get these homes in place before winter. We’re consulting with the neighbourhood through a liaison committee and speaking with individuals experiencing homelessness to move this project forward,” the Councillors said in a joint statement.

In response to the homelessness crisis, City Council decided in May 2023 that the City-owned 210 Wolfe Street/Rehill Parking Lot properties will be the site of new modular bridge housing with secured storage, security, and washroom facilities for 18 to 24 months.

Elizabeth Fry Society is expected to be the site manager for the Modular Bridge Housing community, with an agreement to be finalized.

“The Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough is excited to be able to develop the Bridge housing program that will support this alternative housing option for people who are facing barriers in our community - it will protect them from the elements and ultimately keep people alive,” said Debbie Carriere, Executive Director of the Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough.

“This project represents a community coming together to make a real and concrete difference and will be based on what we have learned from other similar communities, our own housing projects, and will honour the voices of the people who will ultimately live in these units. Housing is a human right and in the midst of a housing crisis we need to be innovative in creating new options that reflect the communities we serve and bring us all together like never before.”

Each cabin, or Modular Bridge Housing unit, will measure approximately 107 square feet and will be furnished and equipped with electricity, heating and cooling.

The Wolfe Street building, where the overflow shelter bed program currently operates, will be converted to provide amenities like common space and washrooms, laundry services.

There will be an office for security staff at the main entrance to the site.

The location will be staffed 24/7 including support services and security.

Background information on the project, project updates, and a Frequently-Asked-Questions section is posted on the City’s online community engagement site, Connect Peterborough, at connectptbo.ca/Modular-Bridge-Housing.

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Peterborough, ON - The City of Peterborough is working with partner agencies performing outreach for people experiencing homelessness to provide them with an update and details on the Wolfe Street Modular Bridge Housing. Outreach workers are showing pictures of the individual units, the layout of the community, and talking with people experiencing homelessness about how the housing community will operate.

Working with community partner agencies, the City will offer accommodation in the Modular Bridge Housing community to 50 individuals who are currently experiencing unsheltered homelessness. Through conversations with individuals, work is underway to identify how support services at the Modular Bridge Housing project will align with each individual’s specific needs. Occupancy is expected to start this fall.

Outreach workers regularly speak with people who are experiencing homelessness to help connect them with available services. There is currently capacity in the Overflow Shelter at 210 Wolfe Street, with approximately 80% of beds available in July and August.

Construction of the Modular Bridge Housing community with 50 individual units is expected to start in September 2023.

Council approved a comprehensive homelessness strategy in May 2023. Part of the strategy includes:

• The 50-unit Modular Bridge Housing project
• Opening a new winter overnight drop-in centre
• Creating a service hub to support the Modular Bridge Housing community

Details are being finalized on the location of the winter overnight drop-in centre that will be open for six months each year and a year-round daytime meal program that will replace the current One Roof community meal program and drop-in centre. An announcement is expected shortly.

Once the new overnight drop-in centre opens and the Modular Bridge Housing project is ready, the Wolfe Street building will be converted from its current overflow shelter program into a service hub to support the Modular Bridge Housing community.

Project information, frequently asked questions, and an option to subscribe to receive updates on the project are available on the City’s community engagement hub at ConnectPtbo.ca/modular-bridge-housing.

(News release issued August 10, 2023)

Another significant step in the creation of a Modular Bridge Housing community with 50 individual units on Wolfe Street in Peterborough for people experiencing homelessness started yesterday with details about the new small housing units shared with potential residents.

Outreach workers showed pictures of the individual units, the layout of the community that will soon begin to take shape, and talked with people experiencing homelessness about how the housing community would operate.

Construction is expected to start in September 2023.

Many of the individual units, which are being built off site then delivered to the property, are ready to be moved to the site once the site is prepared with each unit having electricity along with a heating and cooling system.

Working with community partner agencies, the City will offer accommodation in the Modular Bridge Housing community to 50 individuals who are currently experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

Outreach workers regularly speak with people who are experiencing homelessness to help connect them with available services.

Over the next several weeks, through conversations to identify how support services at the Modular Bridge Housing project will align with each individual’s specific needs, the City will provide offers of accommodation for the new units.

Occupancy is expected to start this fall.

The units are called Modular Bridge Housing since the goal is that the units, the homes, will be a bridge to move people into more permanent housing.

Council approved a comprehensive homelessness strategy in May 2023. Part of the strategy includes:

• The 50-unit Modular Bridge Housing project
• Opening a new winter overnight drop-in centre
• Creating a service hub to support the Modular Bridge Housing community

Details are being finalized on the location of the winter overnight drop-in centre that will be open for six months each year and a year-round daytime meal program that will replace the current One Roof community meal program and drop-in centre. An announcement is expected shortly.

Once the new overnight drop-in centre opens and the Modular Bridge Housing project is ready, the Wolfe Street building will be converted from its current overflow shelter program into a service hub to support the Modular Bridge Housing community.

Project information, frequently asked questions, and an option to subscribe to receive updates on the project are available on the City’s community engagement hub at ConnectPtbo.ca/modular-bridge-housing.

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The City is working closely with community partners, and expects the modular bridge housing at the Wolfe Street/Rehill Parking Lot properties to be up and running by the fall of 2023.

The Modular Bridge Housing project uses modular units to provide individual, supportive housing for people who are unsheltered with the goal of assisting them to move into more permanent housing.

The number of people currently experiencing homelessness in Peterborough City and County is unprecedented and, like many communities across Canada, we are living through a crisis.

In response to this crisis, City Council decided in May 2023 that the City-owned 210 Wolfe Street/Rehill Parking Lot properties will be the site of new modular bridge housing with secured storage, security, and washroom facilities.

There will be 50 individual units as part of the modular temporary housing project. Many of the units are already built off site by the provider and ready to be delivered to the site when construction begins. The site will accommodate 50 people currently experiencing unsheltered homelessness.

The Wolfe Street building that was used as an emergency shelter will be converted into a service hub, where agencies can meet with clients who are in the modular units. This hub will provide the opportunity to immediately connect individuals to the supports they need. The overflow shelter program is operating out of the Peterborough Public Library overnight until after a new winter overnight drop-in centre being operating by One City at the Trinity Centre on Reid Street opens as part of the City's winter response plan.

The goal of the enhanced homelessness services is that clients will be supported to move into supportive housing programs and/or resolve their experience of homelessness. In the meantime, with the new modular bridge housing, they will be provided a unit that is more secure, safer, healthier, and more able to meet individual needs.

The City has been engaging with people who are experiencing homelessness and who are living on the property to share information, offer assistance with the planned changes, and start coordinating the transition of selected individuals into the new modular bridge housing.

The City is temporarily increasing the number of shelter beds to ensure there is capacity in the system.

Modular housing is an important tool in the City’s overall strategy to end chronic homelessness and complements other actions by the City.

Features of the Modular Bridge Housing project

Here are some details about what the modular bridge housing will look like and who will oversee operations on-site:

• The site will be staffed 24/7, managed by City staff and community partners and will include support services and security. Services provided will include mental health and addictions supports, with a strong focus on connecting residents to permanent housing options.
• Fifty individual modular housing units will provide private, safer, and inclusive accommodation for those experiencing unsheltered homelessness.
• Each cabin measures approximately 107 square feet and will be furnished, and equipped with electricity, heating and cooling.
• Safety and security of the residents, staff and neighbours are of critical importance.

The modular bridge housing site is part of the City’s Interim Housing Solutions strategy approved by City Council.

The goal of this initiative is to provide residents with stable connections to support services and help progress people toward permanent housing.