Brockville-area shelter to close for good on New Year's Eve

A 28-bed overnight emergency shelter near Brockville, Ont., is set to close for good at the end of December, and there's worry clients may find themselves without a place to stay during the final hours of the year.

In a Dec. 22 press release, the board of the Cooperative Care Centre (CCC) confirmed "with deep regret" it would shut down on the morning of Dec. 31 because it doesn't have enough funding to stay open.

"The board and staff of the Brockville Housing Partnership wish to offer up a huge 'thank you' to the local community for all your support over the last five years, but especially over the last few, very challenging, months," the statement said.

The centre's board added it would do everything it can to ensure people have a warm place to stay on New Year's Eve, though it didn’t specify how.

Shanna Culhane, director of community and social services for the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, said at a Brockville council meeting that they'd counted 160 people experiencing homelessness in the area.

'That's their home'

Corinna Smith-Gatcke, warden for the counties, said those who were using the shelter will have a place to stay, pointing to supportive housing projects which opened in Brockville in the past year.

Those include the Supportive Cabins Initiative next to the centre, where 25 sleeping cabins opened in February, followed by another 24-unit facility in November.

But Brockville city councillor Louise Severson said she is worried that despite the recent increase in supportive housing capacity, some of the shelter's clients may be on the streets in 2026.

"That's their home and it's where they feel comfortable," she said. "Change is hard, but more so maybe for somebody that's a homeless person."

Severson said she's paid the shelter several visits over the years and knows the clients who call it home.

"There's people that have found themselves in situations where they couldn't pay their rent and all of a sudden they're out on the street," she said.

In a last ditch attempt, Severson proposed a motion to divert $120,000 from Brockville's reserves to the shelter, but her council colleagues voted it down.

Clash over funding

The centre's funding had been a contentious issue, and in its statement the board contested how much cash it's gotten from the county.

It also said it's been covering funding gaps by using money from other sources, including the United Way and community donations.

Smith-Gatcke said the centre had been exceeding its budget for only 24 beds, which she said is the source of the shelter’s funding woes. She added the centre's funding should have lasted them until March 2026.

"The CCC chose to offer much more than the basic contract that we had agreed upon," she told CBC. "Their financial management is what should be questioned."

CBC made several attempts to interview Tony Barnes, the board's treasurer, so that he could respond to Smith-Gatcke's allegations, but he did not reply.