Early progress toward detox centre

Things are looking positive when it comes to services for the homeless and addicted in Belleville.

Provincial officials, the city, and an interested owner/operator have chosen a preferred site for a detox centre on two acres of municipal land north of Highway 401.

Mayor Neil Ellis tells Quinte News that the project is still in the very preliminary stage and many hurdles have yet to be cleared but it’s hoped an up to 35,000 square foot 50-bed detox centre could be open by early 2026 at the latest.

Ellis says another project helping the homeless and addicted, The Bridge Integrated Services Hub, should be open much sooner but the third and final stage of a successful addictions program will still be needed.

“If we don’t have housing and just do detox, the success rate is nowhere near that if you provide stable housing, and that goes back to housing first.”

Ellis says the provincial government has made it clear it wants to create a “continuum of care” model for the homeless and addicted which starts with food and shelter and graduates to various kinds of medical/psychological treatment and ends with decent housing.

A patient’s stay in a detox centre could last six months up to two years.

Meanwhile, the mayor says interior renovations on The Bridge hub should begin within the next few days.  An architect has been hired and various service organizations are coordinating among themselves so that the facility should be ready to go by early next year at the latest.

And if all agreements are reached for a detox centre, it could be up and running by early 2026.  At this early stage cost estimates have not been calculated.

The provincial government would pay for the operations of both the detox centre and the hub.  Ellis says the interested third party owner/operator of the detox centre is local and would be responsible for the construction and is familiar with the healthcare sector.

Ellis says municipalities nation-wide are watching the situation in Belleville and hoping the programs prove successful so the care model could be replicated in their communities.