Our community has taken a significant step forward in addressing some of its most pressing challenges with the official launch of a new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hub in Peterborough.
The hub represents a groundbreaking approach to care, bringing together healthcare providers, social services, and community organizations under one coordinated model. It's designed to improve access to support for residents experiencing homelessness, substance use issues, and mental health challenges — all through a single, integrated system.
Peterborough's hub is one of 29 being established across Ontario as part of the province's broader $560-million investment to expand mental health, addictions, and housing supports throughout the province.
"For the first time in Ontario's history, we are taking a look at the entire continuum for homelessness, addictions, and recovery," said Dave Smith, MPP for Peterborough–Kawartha. "The HART Hub is a fantastic approach; it means that we are crossing different sectors to ensure that we are providing the services where they need it, when they need it, and at the appropriate level. People can enter at any stage into the Hub, wherever they are, and then progress through. It is the first time that any province has looked at the entire continuum for homelessness, addiction, and rehab."
What makes this model unique is its flexibility. Residents can access care at any point in their journey, whether they're seeking housing assistance, addiction treatment, mental health support, or a combination of services. The system is designed to meet people where they are and provide wraparound supports tailored to individual needs.
MPP Laurie Scott, who represents Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock, emphasized the importance of bringing these coordinated services closer to home for vulnerable community members.
"The opening of the Peterborough HART Hub marks an important step forward in ensuring that our most vulnerable residents have access to the supports they need," Scott said. "The HART Hub brings together health care, mental health and addiction services, housing supports, and other community resources in one place, helping people access compassionate care closer to home."
The Peterborough HART Hub is led by the Four Counties Addictions Services Team (Fourcast), working in partnership with several key local organizations: the City of Peterborough Social Services, the Canadian Mental Health Association — Haliburton, Kawartha and Pine Ridge, Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough, Peterborough Community Health Centre, Peterborough County-City Paramedics, and Peterborough Regional Health Centre.
Donna Rogers, executive director of Fourcast, explained how the provincial investment will strengthen and diversify local support systems.
"The provincial government's investment in HART Hub Peterborough provides local partners with the opportunity to expand resources and services for those experiencing homelessness in our community," Rogers said. "Building on the core foundations of homelessness services in Peterborough, we will diversify our housing solutions to target specialized services for specialized needs. Our unique model puts a laser focus on long term housing stability for those with few housing options. We believe that housing is the solution for those in our community facing the intersecting crisis of addiction, mental health and homelessness."
The hub will offer an integrated range of services including primary care, mental health and addictions treatment, case management, employment and income supports, supportive housing, and Indigenous-led services. By consolidating these resources, officials hope to ease pressure on emergency departments and frontline services while providing more comprehensive, coordinated care.
The initiative is part of Ontario's Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care and builds on the Roadmap to Wellness strategy, which aims to improve coordination across the province's mental health and addictions system.
For our community, the HART Hub represents more than just expanded services — it's a commitment to addressing the interconnected challenges of homelessness, addiction, and mental health through a compassionate, coordinated approach that recognizes the complexity of these issues and the importance of meeting people where they are in their journey toward stability and recovery.
