Former Kitchener church to be converted into supportive housing

KITCHENER, ONT. — The former St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Kitchener, Ont. will be converted into new supportive housing for lower-income households.

The governments of Canada and Ontario are providing over $1.4 million to support the creation the 43 new affordable housing units. Construction of the project is expected to be completed this fall.

The investment was made possible thanks to the Ontario Priorities Housing Initiative (OPHI), an initiative of the Canada-Ontario Bilateral Agreement under the National Housing Strategy.

St. Mark’s Place is located at 825 King St. W. and includes 24 one-bedroom units and 19 studios. Amenities in the new facility include a laundry room, a tenant common room, a community kitchen, gathering areas and a multi-use community space. The supportive housing project is serving tenants with higher acuity needs who were previously experiencing homelessness, therefore health services and addictions support will also be available onsite, a release indicates.

“The St. Mark’s Place development by Indwell, was the last project announcement made before the initial COVID-19 lockdown,” said Mayor of Kitchener Berry Vrbanovic in a statement. “Today’s announcement demonstrates Canada and Ontario’s ongoing recovery efforts and is an excellent example of what can happen when all orders of government and community partners work together in an effort to end homelessness and create truly affordable and supportive housing.”