New YWCA facility nears pre-development

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/11/2024 (349 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

One year after the demolition of the former Meredith Place transitional housing residence, YWCA Westman is about to move forward with the necessary pre-development work on a new facility.

“We’re at 80 per cent of the funds that we anticipate needing to do that pre-development work,” YWCA Westman executive director Lois Ruston said on Tuesday. “In the coming weeks, we’ll be issuing a call for proposals for a consultant who can work with us to do that pre-development and design work.”

The former Meredith Place, which was located on the 100 block of 11th Street, served as transitional housing for thousands of women during its time as a domestic violence shelter. The YWCA women’s shelter, however, has operated in a separate location for the last four decades. Meredith Place was repurposed as interim housing for incarcerated people leaving jail until 2022, when the YWCA Westman board ended its contract with Corrections Canada. That structure was no longer feasible to maintain after a pipe burst in early 2023, and the need for a new facility became obvious.

But with a new facility comes an opportunity to better meet the needs of the community. Ruston says she hopes a consultant hired by the organization will be able to help them determine what factors and elements would make sense in the new build, what the cost estimate would be, and to help them identify what other collaborators and partners might be available to work with them.

“Actual construction, of course, will come in time, once we have done our due diligence to determine what it is that we need to build, and what the needs within the community and the region are. Potentially some other partnerships that we may be able to put in place — you know, for housing partnerships and those types of things.”

Ruston says the organization needs a consultant who has knowledge and experience in this area, and who will be able to provide that knowledge from other similar projects that have been done in either in Manitoba or even in other provinces.

The hope is to have that process completed before the end of 2025.

“We want to make sure that we are putting together a plan or a facility that will meet the needs of our region, really into the future. Right now is one thing, but to look ahead to what we will need as a community and as a region in the years to come.”

While they expect the consultant to help them with the planning, Ruston says they already have a good idea of what they would like to see in a new facility. The YWCA would like it to incorporate shelter space, and perhaps have an option for transitional housing, particularly for women and their families who are needing additional support.

Currently, the YWCA Westman administration office is leasing space in the former Brandon Club building, which is located next door to where Meredith Place was located. Ideally, Ruston says a new facility would also allow them to move into a new space on site, and allow for the creation of new programming and partnership opportunities.

The organization was fortunate in recent weeks to received a substantial anonymous donation that put them to that 80 per cent mark of their fundraising efforts for the pre-development work. While Ruston said it’s good to see the process now moving forward, they’re still looking for additional help to fill out that final 20 per cent.

“Partners are always welcome,” Ruston said. “We have a number of applications and possibilities out there, but we done have them firmly in place. So we are always looking for partners to help us get over that last hump. So it someone is interested, or knows of a funding program that might be a fit, then we certainly welcome them to reach out.”

» mgoerzen@brandonsun.com

» Bluesky: @mattgoerzen.bsky.social