Chalmers Community Services ran its last services out of 40 Baker St. on Friday morning.
Starting Monday, the organization that serves Guelph’s homeless and marginalized citizens will start moving its downtown programs temporarily to 577 Willow Road. It is tentatively scheduled to move into its new permanent location at 41 Macdonell Street in the under-renovation 10C facility by June 1.
Chalmers will occupy the main floor of the former Acker Furniture building, sharing in its ownership.
Chalmers food and clothing pantries were open Friday morning. First thing in the afternoon, volunteers began packing up the offices in preparation for the move next Monday and Tuesday.
On Friday, Sarah Dermer, program and volunteer coordinator, said in the interim it will be crucial to ensure continued support for the downtown people Chalmers serves.
Plans are underway to offer a Friday morning bus service, and a Wednesday evening shuttle service to the Willow Road location. Services are expected to resume on Willow Road by Apr. 12.
Dermer said the move to Macdonell Street is later than originally planned, but not unexpected given the complexities of renovating the old building.
“We are really hoping that our downtown guests will find us on Willow,” she said. “We really want to be serving our downtown people. We want to ensure that those who don’t have access to services can make it to us.”
The permanent space, once occupied, will bring much greater visibility to the organization, she added.
“It will be a store-front operation, making it easier for those who need us to find us,” she said.
Chalmers Community Services Centre operates Chalmers Downtown and Chalmers West. Its food pantry is among its main offerings, but it also provides things like clothing, diapers, and household items, as well as personal support and community for those who live on the margins in our city.
Its credo is, “A world, without poverty, where communities are flourishing with dignity, equality and food security for all.”
