St. Catharines HART Hub stalls services due to provincial funding delays

At the site of the planned new HART hub in St. Catharines, staff have been getting ready to help people who need it, but right now there’s nothing they can do.

“Essentially it’s not happening,” Nancy Garner said.

“We’re still waiting to hear the funding announcement for the HART hub, we understand that it should be coming shortly.”

The province forced the closure of supervised consumption sites near schools earlier this year and instead created 28 HART hubs, also known as Homeless and Addiction Recovery Treatment hubs, for a price tag of $500 million.

In St. Catharines, staff were told to be ready to open in April. But the Queens Park money hasn’t showed up.

“Right now we’re waiting for the provincial government to come forward with funds that they promised back in April,” St. Catharines MPP Jennie Stevens said.

“It’s been almost six months that we’ve been waiting for funds to open up this vital part of our community.”

Stevens says she’s been asking the government why the money is delayed. So far, she has received no answer.

Without the hub, there are fears that people are going without treatment, and that some could die while they wait.

“Will there be deaths? Yes, on a daily basis we are seeing deaths right here in St. Catharines,” says Stevens.

“They’re falling through the cracks. They are taking their own lives or they’re overdosing.”

“They’re not getting the care they need, so they’re living with these addiction challenges, the trauma that is surrounding addictions, the mental health issues that surround addictions, and are getting no help whatsoever,” Garner said.

As it stands, HART hub staff are afraid they may not see any provincial money until the fall, which could be any time up until almost the end of December.

In Hamilton, people have expressed concern that they weren’t consulted about plans for a HART hub on Aberdeen Avenue in their neighbourhood. Other cities say they’re also facing delays in getting the money for the hubs, from Toronto to Guelph, London and Sudbury.

Health Minister Sylvia Jones office told us today the government is working with St. Catharines and 18 other communities to open their hubs “as soon as possible.”

But as St. Catharines waits, they say the problems are growing.

“Without this HART hub open, our emergency rooms are bursting at the seams,” says Stevens.

“They’re closing down emergency rooms in Fort Erie, Port Colborne, and now our emergency room in St. Catharines is overworked, and we’re fighting with mental health.”

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