The Downtown Mission had given up its plans to use the former Central Branch of the Windsor Public Library, but now it's in use as an emergency shelter.
Executive Director Ron Dunn says the mission continues to deal with a COVID-19 outbreak that has sidelined 17 of his staff members. Dunn tells The Afternoon News there are currently 40 guests who have tested positive for COVID-19 with 46 more awaiting test results at the mission.
He says the current owners of the former library stepped up to help stop the spread of the virus.
"The key push was that we needed a way to keep people 6ft. apart from each other and our building on Victoria Avenue simply couldn't do that, nor could the emergency shelter at 875 Ouellette Avenue."
The temporary shelter came together quickly with Monday night's snowstorm looming, according to Dunn.
"We sterilized the entire first floor of the library, brought over mats and they obviously needed to be sterilized," he says. "There was a lot of work to do because we couldn't bring any of the other stuff over that could be contaminated."
Dunn says staff with Assisted Living Southwestern Ontario are helping operate the shelter.
"To pull it off, obviously I don't have enough staff to stay open on my own, so people are lending me staff, which is amazing," says Dunn. "We're just doing the best we can to keep people safe from this weather too, that's the other complicating factor."
The Downtown Mission planned to purchase the building at 850 Ouellette Ave., but the deal fell through last year.
Dunn says the mission still has an offer in on a property on McDougall and Shepherd Street East where it plans to build its new home.