Will a temporary supportive housing project be allowed at an historic Delhi Street building? That decision rests with the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT), which is set to hear arguments for and against the idea this summer.
Seven days have been set aside for the hearing, scheduled to begin Aug. 8.
The hearing will deal with Delhi Eramosa Neighbourhood Advocates’ (DENA) appeal of city council’s decision last July to amend the zoning bylaw for 65 Delhi St. to allow for a 28-bedroom transitional housing project.
If ultimately approved, the County of Wellington plans to use the site as a permanent home for its temporary supportive housing efforts previously run out of Loyola House at the Ignatius Jesuit Centre that began in 2020.
A lease at the centre expired last fall, at which time 35 people living there were relocated back to the Holiday Inn Express, which is where the program house people prior to Loyola House.
In a news release issued at the time the appeal was filed last August, DENA argues the site isn’t large enough to accommodate 28 bedrooms as well as planned services.
The property was previously owned by the city, but council declared it surplus in 2020 after a staff report noted it required $800,000 in renovations and repairs but had no planned use.
Wellington County’s purchase offer was dependent on zoning approval for the temporary supportive housing program.
The building at 65 Delhi St., which is on the city’s list of identified heritage structures but not formally designated, was acquired by the city in 1911 and was used as an isolation hospital. During the 1960s it was converted into recreational space for summer camps, arts programs and more, but that stopped in 2008.
The north half of the building was once used by Guelph Wellington Paramedic Services.
