Lessons Learned from City's Latest Homelessness Initiatives

In 2023, the City of Peterborough implemented two new initiatives to respond to homelessness in the city and to offer low-barrier services for people whose needs were not being met by the existing shelter system at the time.Those two initiatives were the modular housing community on Wolfe Street, where 50 sleeping cabins replaced a tent encampment, and the Trinity Community Centre, which was funded to provide overnight shelter for six months of the year and a daytime drop-in program year-round.In February 2024, four people who were instrumental in designing and delivering these two initiatives participated in a panel discussion to share what the process was like, what they learned, and what challenges remain. The panelists were: Alex Bierk, Christian Harvey, Auden Palmer, and Jessica Penner.The panel was part of the Community Symposium on Housing and Homelessness, which was hosted at Trent University by the Research for Social Change Lab, the Peterborough Drug Strategy, and United Way Peterborough and District. Peterborough Currents is sharing highlights from this panel discussion in this podcast episode.UPDATE: This discussion was recorded on February 23, 2024. At the time, the Trinity Centre's overnight shelter was set to close for the season on March 31, and mention of this closure is made a couple of times in this podcast. On March 25, 2024, One City Peterborough confirmed to Currents that the shelter will remain open until at least the end of April with support from United Way Peterborough and District.CREDITS: This episode was produced by Will Pearson. Audio recording by Ayesha Lye. Intro music by Jordan Cook.SUPPORT INDEPENDENT LOCAL JOURNALISM: At Peterborough Currents, our mission is to serve the citizens of Peterborough with in-depth and community centred news. If you value our work, please support us financially: https://peterboroughcurrents.ca/support-us/