Work continues to get the Street Help homeless drop-in centre ready for those in need.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March, the shelter has only been able to offer a food handout service as no one has been allowed inside the building.
Administrator Christine Wilson-Furlonger says the region's move to Stage 3 of the province's reopening framework allows for occupants, but renovations to make the facility safe are quite costly and time consuming.
"We're having installed no flush toilets, no contact at all, and the sinks where the water will be dispensed by motion,” she says. “A lot of places already have that, but we hadn't gone into those. We didn't see the need as immediate, but now we know it is."
According to Wilson-Furlonger, the main area of the shelter is going to look quite different.
"Counters and plastic shielding [have been added] and it all had to be specialized to fit our area,” she says. “This way we'll have the ability to open the doors and let people come back in. We'll have safety on our side and safety on the side of the people who need our services."
Wilson-Furlonger says securing product and contractors has been a headache.
“A lot of this is difficult to acquire due to the pandemic. A lot of other restaurants and others are ordering and there's a real dent in the market of what's available. So we're lucky to get just enough to get the centre updated."
Wilson-Furlonger says the goal is to have the centre at 964 Wyandotte St. E in Windsor open within the next two weeks and in the meantime the shelter will continue its food handout program.
— With files from AM800's Rob Hindi