Officials at the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit have approved spending to retrofit the current location in Windsor after a plan to move to the University of Windsor fell through earlier this year.
As part of the health unit's 2025 budget, the board has approved spending $535,000 as part of a capital plan to retrofit and renovate the existing office building at 1005 Ouellette Ave., right at the intersection with Erie Street West.
Health Unit CEO Dr. Ken Blanchette says they want to invest in the infrastructure.
"It's really about making sure it's there for the client, it's there for our staff, and it's the best possible use of space," he says.
Health unit officials expect to continue operating out of the location for another 3 to 5 years but will need to optimize the existing space to improve the efficiency of program delivery for staff and clients.
In January 2024, the health unit announced that a proposal to relocate to space at the University of Windsor had fallen apart due to financial issues.
Blanchette says there will be some moving of the departments as part of the renovations.
"We're looking at client waiting areas; we've been doing some retrofits within the dental space as well, updating some equipment in there. Really updating the IT infrastructure. Updating the space in the area as well, it's a very dated building," he says.
The building maintenance project will include a complete renovation of the interior, including flooring, painting, and lighting that has not been refreshed in decades, along with more meeting space and centralized storage, along with upgrades to office furniture to support a healthy and safe work environment.