West end Belleville residents are pushing back hard against announced plans by the Salvation Army to expand their Bridge Street church at the intersection with Palmer Road.
Over 100 residents attended an open house held at the church where the organization was unveiling plans for the new expansion. The crowd of angry residents started in a room with several displays showing the plans set up, but when one-on-one conversations with staff weren’t working to address the group’s concerns, Salvation Army Staff organized the open house into a town hall style meeting where many residents took turns voicing their concerns and demanding answers from the staff.
The members of the Salvation Army present had a hard time answering the questions presented, and the community response to the meeting was overwhelmingly negative.
One common concern was that homeless people from downtown would begin camping in the area, leaving needles and other waste out in the open, similarly to previous issues experienced close to Bridge Street United Church.
Other residents were concerned their property values would fall, and some residents like Liz Gregory stated that if the project went ahead as planned they might have to move to avoid losing their home’s value.
“Who will compensate us for that if our property loses value? Should we have our homes appraised now and see what they’re worth and then have them appraised later and see what the difference is? Should we sell now before our property values drop? We just don’t know,” said Gregory. Her home directly adjoins the church property, with her back porch overlooking what will become a new driveway and loading zone for trucks.
Local residents engage with Salvation Army staff among displays showcasing the plans for the expanded bridge street church property. Photo by Alan-Michael Steele
Another common concern was that the plans to develop the property were sprung on the community with no warning or chance for input. Linda Jack, a local resident, said that residents should have been given more notice.
“My thoughts are that I wish we had been told about it earlier. I think it’s discourteous not to tell people when there’s going to be a massive change or adjustment in the community,” said Jack.
Other local residents voiced concerns that there was very little actual information about the impact of the changes available, with no posted traffic studies, community impact studies, or consultation with other community members.
The Salvation Army committed to taking feedback from the session, and returning with the information requested as soon as possible, but no timeline was set.
The expansion at Bridge Street church is intended to replace the Salvation Army’s property on Pinnacle Street, which they plan to close. Rebekah Leach, Director of Community and Family Services for the local Salvation Army, said that they had outgrown their Pinnacle Street location, as its small size and inaccessible design was limiting the community outreach they could do there.
“We have outgrown that building. It’s not conducive to our needs for our programming any longer. We’ve run out of space,” said Leach “It’s two storeys, which is very difficult to offer programs to people who have mobility issues, and it’s not a welcoming space.”
Architectural drawings showed a new driveway being added off Palmer Road, and a large warehouse, kitchen and dining area being added to the existing structure. Significant space was also included for a food bank and multipurpose space for the various community programs the Salvation Army provides.
An architectural rendering of the proposed floor plan for the new expansion to the Salvation Army church, on display during their open house. Photo by Alan-Michael Steele
Plans for the newly expanded facilities include preparing meals for the local homeless population, but the meals aren’t planned to be served at the citadel. Because of the long walk between the Bridge Street property and other supports and services for the homeless downtown, plans have been made to prepare the food at the citadel, and then take it downtown in a food truck to deliver to people in need.
A community meal service is planned for the citadel, with its focus being on low income members of the community surrounding the property, with the delivery service focused on the downtown population.
“That truck will still be visiting downtown to feed the population and to feed people where they’re at. We don’t want people to travel. We don’t want to make it harder for them to access things. So we will be feeding people where they reside,” said Leach.
The Salvation Army plans to begin construction in July, with the expansion complete in mid-January.
Multiple Belleville city councillors were in attendance at the meeting, including Sean Kelly, Lisa Anne Chatten, Tyler Allsopp, and Garnet Thompson.
Councillor Chatten said that while she supports the Salvation Army, the local residents have valid concerns that need to be addressed.
“I think everybody has very valid concerns. And I think that the history that they’ve seen other areas where this has popped up, their notions are not coming out of thin air. Some of the concerns that they have are founded because they’ve seen them in other areas of the city. So I think they need to be taken very seriously.”
She plans to discuss the matter at the next meeting of Belleville council.
