Staff to offer an extension of the current pilot program with Royal City Mission to offer drop-in service hours 6 days a week…

55:15And so let's start with the daytime drop

55:17in services update.

55:19We have the report from our staff,

55:24but we have three delegations.

55:26Morgan Dandy, are you here in person?

55:30Oh yeah, okay, you're first, come on down.

55:33And then second, I've just been asked

55:35just to do a little reversal here.

55:37So Kevin, you'll be second.

55:40Yep, you're good with that, right?

55:41Yeah, and then Paul is here.

55:44So it's Kevin Cogill and Paul Costello.

55:48They'll just switch as the three, okay?

55:50So Morgan Dandy is coming down.

55:54Just so all the delegates know,

55:55no more than five minutes, you get to speak.

55:58You'll hear a chime at the four minutes and 30 second mark

56:02to give you a warning that there is only 30 seconds left.

56:06And then once you're done, just stick around

56:08just in case there's a follow up question

56:10from my council colleagues or myself, okay?

56:13So Morgan, you know the drill.

56:14You've been here before, you have up to five minutes

56:17and you can go right ahead.

56:19Thank you.

56:22Mayor and council, I'm here today to implore you

56:27to please make the motion,

56:32give the money for another three months.

56:35As I'm sure you all remember, I ran for city council

56:38and I had a focus on the fact that I am a renter.

56:43And I spent a lot of time getting to know

56:47the population downtown that accesses services,

56:50probably to my detriment, as far as being able

56:54to become a city councillor because the under house

57:00don't tend to vote.

57:03I served breakfast at Hope House every single week

57:06from July until the end of October last year.

57:13And I joined in various meals at Royal City Mission.

57:18Part of the reason why I did that

57:21is because I was on OW at the time.

57:25Since then, my physical health and my mental health,

57:29I have new diagnoses in both and I'm now on ODSP.

57:35I am waiting for the letter that tells me

57:40when I am evicted, what date I must be out of my home.

57:48I was not able to figure out a way to maintain

57:51where I live right now.

57:55I'm an older adult, I'll be 57 in February,

58:00and finding a job right now as someone over the age

58:05of 55 is difficult enough.

58:08I had a great job and my body let me down.

58:12I was not physically capable of sitting in an office

58:16for eight hours a day.

58:17I can't do it anymore.

58:22If it weren't for RCM, I would be even more despairing

58:30than I am right now because I know that at least

58:33I can go to RCM and have somewhere to stay warm

58:36if I end up on the street.

58:39On October 13th, I took in the fourth individual

58:43to stay with me in the four years

58:45that I've been living in my one bedroom apartment.

58:48This individual is a young woman who arrived here

58:51as a refugee from Kenya.

58:53She's here today in the audience,

58:55along with a few of her fellow Kenyans

58:58who are all refugees here and have all found

59:01their community together at RCM.

59:07Royal City Mission is more than just a feeding place

59:11and a warming place.

59:12It is a place where community is formed.

59:17I understand that there are issues in the downtown core

59:23and at the same time, the vast majority of individuals

59:27that access services at Royal City Mission

59:30are not part of the problem.

59:33We cannot allow a small percentage of individuals

59:39that are the most vulnerable to sway us

59:45from supporting the majority of people

59:49that take the time to be in community at Royal City Mission.

59:55When I go in there, people know me, people know my dog.

59:59They love to be able to say hi.

1:00:03I ask people how they're doing.

1:00:05There's specific individuals that I watch out for

1:00:08because I know they're incredibly vulnerable.

1:00:13And when I don't see them, I ask about them.

1:00:14And that's what this community is about.

1:00:17Royal City Mission isn't just a place, it's a community.

1:00:21And if we are not able to find our way clear

1:00:25to staff appropriately

1:00:28so people can have a place to be in community together,

1:00:33what does that say about our city?

1:00:40Breaks in being able to provide service

1:00:46is not something that RCM needs.

1:00:49They need our support to support the most vulnerable.

1:00:52And there are more and more of us that are working

1:00:57that need the supports of places like Royal City Mission,

1:01:05which is gonna be highlighted later this week.

1:01:10That's all I have to say right now.

1:01:12Great, thank you very much, Maureen.

1:01:14Thank you for sharing.

1:01:15And let me see if there's a follow-up question at this time.

1:01:19Okay, there isn't, thank you very much.

1:01:23And now Paul Costello is here from, I'm sorry, Kevin.

1:01:28I'm sorry, Kevin Cockles coming from Royal City Mission.

1:01:31And then Paul Costello from Ontario Public Interest Research Group,

1:01:35or OPERC, is gonna be next.

1:01:44So welcome, Kevin.

1:01:45And again, whenever you're ready,

1:01:46the clock will start only when you start.

1:01:47So go right ahead.

1:01:50Thank you.

1:01:51Mayor Guthrie and council members,

1:01:53thank you for the opportunity to speak this evening.

1:01:56I want to express my gratitude to council

1:01:59for your dedication and acknowledge your desire.

1:02:02It's probably the same as mine,

1:02:03to make Guelph a beautiful home for its residents.

1:02:07One of the things that I do in my spare time

1:02:09is I coach wrestling.

1:02:10And last year I took a team of wrestlers

1:02:12to a local high school.

1:02:13And during that tournament,

1:02:17two youth were stabbed in the plaza across the road.

1:02:21And I'm gonna spare you the details,

1:02:23but the story ends with me faced down on the floor

1:02:25with swats surrounding me

1:02:27and their assault rifles aimed at me.

1:02:30And if I said this happened at Royal City,

1:02:32you might think, well, that makes sense.

1:02:34But in my 13 years at RCM,

1:02:35this has never, nothing close to this has ever happened.

1:02:39And I'm not here to tell you stories.

1:02:41However, this anecdote highlights

1:02:43that we are experiencing violence throughout the community,

1:02:46along with fear, anxiety and desperation.

1:02:49In fact, your next agenda item has to do

1:02:51with domestic violence.

1:02:53A good friend of mine who works with victims

1:02:55of human trafficking recently told me,

1:02:57human trafficking and domestic violence

1:02:58are the children of poverty.

1:03:00And I agree.

1:03:02And I would add that addictions,

1:03:03sex trafficking, domestic violence

1:03:06are the children of poverty and trauma.

1:03:10These challenges are magnified

1:03:11and become highly visible for the city's unhoused population,

1:03:14who are often trying to cope with mental health issues

1:03:17and have no private space

1:03:18in which to hide their coping strategies.

1:03:21At the end of the day, I take my anxiety and my fear home

1:03:25and I curl up in a nice warm bed.

1:03:28But many of my friends do not have this luxury.

1:03:31The struggles that we're seeing around the city

1:03:34and downtown are a result of poverty and trauma.

1:03:39Desperation, that's the word that I would use

1:03:42to describe our neighbors who are struggling to survive.

1:03:45Desperation, it's a word I'd adhere over and over again

1:03:47from our colleagues who work frontline

1:03:49against the fight or against poverty.

1:03:52The Wellington County website reports

1:03:54that the average wait time for housing is five years

1:03:57and some have waited longer than eight years to be housed.

1:04:01No wonder there's desperation.

1:04:04The good news is there have been some incredible successes

1:04:06over the last few years.

1:04:07Grace Gardens has opened, the Kindle Project

1:04:10is almost ready to go

1:04:11and the Dalhous Street facility is being prepared.

1:04:15All of these are incredible efforts

1:04:17in the struggle against homelessness.

1:04:19However, Guelph will not be able to keep up

1:04:21with the housing demand

1:04:22until people are given enough income to live.

1:04:25They need a guaranteed basic income and affordable housing

1:04:28and I know that these issues are way beyond our reach,

1:04:31much further up the chain

1:04:32than the Ministry of Plarm of Government.

1:04:34But in the meantime, the city of Guelph

1:04:37has left to deal with the consequences of decisions

1:04:39made at other levels of government.

1:04:41Those decisions leave people on the street and dying.

1:04:46I took a quick look at my phone this week

1:04:48and I keep a picture of as many of the community members

1:04:52at Royal City Mission that have died.

1:04:54This year, I have 11

1:04:58and I don't have them all.

1:05:01Of those deaths, only two would I consider

1:05:03to have died from natural causes.

1:05:06The rest were death by poverty.

1:05:09Over this year, we have seen the RCEM

1:05:11drop in numbers increase.

1:05:12More people are struggling to afford rent and food.

1:05:15There's no doubt in my mind that our drop in space

1:05:17is needed for those who aren't housed

1:05:18and for those who are under housed.

1:05:20And I'm not suggesting that RCEM

1:05:22should be the organization to receive funding

1:05:24to remain open 12 hours a day.

1:05:26But here we are again at a crisis point in the year

1:05:28with the weather getting colder

1:05:30and there's still no plan to keep our neighbors

1:05:31out of the elements.

1:05:34In the absence of another option,

1:05:36I can tell you that RCEM will fill the gap

1:05:38to allow council to carefully consider

1:05:39more sustainable tactics.

1:05:42Having a space for people who are struggling

1:05:44takes pressure off other services like health services,

1:05:46hospital and ambulance, police services

1:05:49and community services like the library.

1:05:51But what it cannot solve is homelessness,

1:05:53addiction or mental illness.

1:05:55RCEM is a stop gap but a highly necessary one.

1:06:00If we are the ones to fill the gap in services this winter,

1:06:03we will need your financial support.

1:06:06The first motion in the report from staff

1:06:07will help save lives, mitigate risk

1:06:09and help support the most vulnerable in our community.

1:06:11And the second motion would allow for an open process

1:06:14that may lead to a more sustainable solution.

1:06:17Thank you for listening.

1:06:19And thank you very much for delegating, Kevin.

1:06:22Let's see if there's some follow up questions.

1:06:24I'll start with Linda.

1:06:25I'm sorry, Councillor Poussatil.

1:06:27Councillor Downer, Councillor Allt.

1:06:30And then I'll start going.

1:06:31Councillor, Kate and I see you as well.

1:06:33Just remind me just in case, yeah.

1:06:36Thank you, Kevin.

1:06:37And thank you for the work that you do.

1:06:39And I just want to, I guess reflect back to you.

1:06:44Thank you also for acknowledging that the city

1:06:47is also on the front end of this

1:06:49and that there are other levels of government

1:06:51that haven't come to the table.

1:06:53So thank you for acknowledging that as well.

1:06:56When you spoke, you spoke that,

1:06:58you mentioned that RCM may not be the organization

1:07:02that takes this forward.

1:07:06Are you seeing other organizations

1:07:08that are stepping up to the plate?

1:07:10That's my first question.

1:07:11And my second question is about the ask,

1:07:14the amount in there.

1:07:15I will admit it's been years since I've been to RCM,

1:07:19to the facility.

1:07:20I don't have a picture of what the service looks like

1:07:24in terms of number of staff and shifts and things like that.

1:07:27If you can help me with those.

1:07:29Sure, so can you remind me of the first question?

1:07:36When you were speaking, you were saying that

1:07:37it may not be RCM.

1:07:38That is the one that fills the gap.

1:07:41What are you hearing?

1:07:42This is more of a service provider question.

1:07:44Are you hearing things in the community?

1:07:47No, I actually don't know if anyone else,

1:07:49I'm just saying we don't want to take for granted

1:07:51that we would be the people to fill that.

1:07:53And would welcome other services

1:07:56that would be interested in doing that work.

1:08:00And then the second, you were asking questions

1:08:02about kind of operations.

1:08:04So just quick numbers.

1:08:05I did send in a report.

1:08:07This year so far, 48,169 visits.

1:08:12203 is our daily average of drop in number.

1:08:181867 unique individuals accessing the program.

1:08:22And 75,600 meals.

1:08:29Okay, so that is kind of the need.

1:08:32And I don't think we're disputing the need.

1:08:34If you can help me create a picture

1:08:35because it's been many years since it's been there.

1:08:38So 8 a.m. to 7 30 p.m.

1:08:40What does it look like in the people?

1:08:41How do you deliver your services at number of staff?

1:08:46You know, what does it look like?

1:08:48So we always have at least three staff on the floor

1:08:52managing the area and the services.

1:08:57Sometimes four depending on demand,

1:09:00depending on the amount of people in.

1:09:05Thank you.

1:09:07Thank you, Councillor Downer.

1:09:08Then all is next.

1:09:10Thank you.

1:09:11Through you, Mr. Mayor.

1:09:12So I too thank you for the work you do, Kevin.

1:09:16I really do appreciate it.

1:09:20And I don't disagree with anything you've said either.

1:09:23I completely agree.

1:09:25What I'm sort of what I need to know

1:09:30as fiduciary responsibility from Council

1:09:33is the breakdown of your numbers.

1:09:35Because normally when we do a community benefit agreement,

1:09:38we have a significant amount of data around the financials

1:09:42and how it's spent.

1:09:45So we've gone from 20,000 a month, 20,900,

1:09:53a month that we were providing for the eight to 12.

1:09:59And so just let me know who is funding,

1:10:02how are you getting funded from the 12 until 730?

1:10:06So that is individual donors.

1:10:08So that was individual donors.

1:10:10And so now it's, from what I understand,

1:10:15it says it costs 71,000 to run the mission.

1:10:19So is that the shelter part or is that the whole mission?

1:10:23That is our drop-in program.

1:10:24That is the drop-in program.

1:10:27So you're wanting the full 71,000,

1:10:29which is a 300% increase.

1:10:31So you're not planning to do any,

1:10:35so the donations will not be going to this program anymore.

1:10:38So if I can respond to that,

1:10:41the agreement that we had last year

1:10:43was based on four hours of time,

1:10:46but it required us to be open for 12 hours.

1:10:49We cannot guarantee 12 hours

1:10:51when our funding is guaranteed for four hours.

1:10:58So it's about being guaranteed to be open.

1:11:00That's correct.

1:11:01And so you're not,

1:11:04so you don't know,

1:11:07so this 71,000 funds the whole time

1:11:12and so donations will not be going

1:11:14into the drop-in program anymore.

1:11:17Sorry, yes.

1:11:20We would love for them to go into the drop-in program.

1:11:22That's our plan.

1:11:23We just cannot guarantee that we can be open for 12 hours

1:11:26unless we can have guaranteed funding.

1:11:27Our donations have steadily gone down.

1:11:32So the request was for 12 hours to be open.

1:11:36So we're seeing the only way to guarantee an open 12 hours

1:11:39just to guarantee the funding for 12 hours.

1:11:42So if we weren't asking for that guarantee,

1:11:47then what would it be?

1:11:48Well, it would depend on what we're asking for.

1:11:53What would be a continuation of what we had before?

1:11:57So the continuation of what we had before was that we were-

1:12:00And I'm not saying that, I'm just curious, right?

1:12:03A continuation of what we had before.

1:12:04So to fund four hours, can I call a friend?

1:12:10I have-

1:12:10Well, I guess it's just sort of part of my issue.

1:12:12Even at that, even at the 71,000 or the 20,000,

1:12:17we as somebody who oversees the implementation

1:12:22of community benefit agreements,

1:12:23our staff would have to see the breakdown of,

1:12:26okay, how many staff, like any ordinary agreement

1:12:30that we have, like I know in the morning

1:12:32that Hope House gives you breakfast,

1:12:34you've told me that before,

1:12:35and the rest of the day you get a lot of donations

1:12:37and food is mostly funded through food.

1:12:39But I don't understand, I just sort of,

1:12:41we don't have those numbers.

1:12:43And I guess you could bring somebody down,

1:12:45but I don't know, do we wanna do that or?

1:12:49Yeah, I, look, we're here for a discussion.

1:12:52If someone else has more information

1:12:55that can help you answer that,

1:12:57I'm happy to have that person come down.

1:12:58That's not a problem.

1:13:05And just for the formalities sake,

1:13:07although we know each other,

1:13:07I just, you know, you just gotta say your name

1:13:09for the record and then go ahead and answer

1:13:11the question that was posed.

1:13:16Mark Anderson, managing director for Royal City Mission.

1:13:20That matters.

1:13:20Hi, Mark.

1:13:22And I think we need the question asked one more time.

1:13:24So the question was,

1:13:26for the continuation of the existing program,

1:13:29which we paid 20,942, what is that cost?

1:13:36So without a guarantee.

1:13:37Without, well, if,

1:13:43we have to sit down and look at a realistic,

1:13:45what a realistic budget of next year would be like.

1:13:49We haven't been able to do that, to be honest,

1:13:51because the funding has been such in question.

1:13:55We are, Kevin said our donations are going down.

1:13:58They're not going down.

1:13:59They're actually stagnated.

1:14:00They're actually keeping the same,

1:14:01which on a charitable level is actually pretty good, right?

1:14:04Now, because most charities are seeing a drop.

1:14:07So our numbers are staying the same,

1:14:08but our costs are going up.

1:14:09The amount it costs to staff, for instance, are going up.

1:14:15We, when we started this,

1:14:16we were kind of going into a year long initiative, right?

1:14:21And when you're going for a year,

1:14:23you run full out, right?

1:14:26We're now talking about when we went back

1:14:28and did a CBA application,

1:14:30which we did earlier this year for renewal.

1:14:34It's the question of what we're going to be doing long term.

1:14:37So our staff are extremely underpaid and exhausted.

1:14:41So we have to look at looking at ways

1:14:45to maintain their mental health and their care.

1:14:48So we're, our costing for our staff is going up.

1:14:51If we're going to involve them in this again.

1:14:59So that's our reality.

1:15:00If it's just a 20,000, that like people are just like,

1:15:03that's what we can do.

1:15:06We're willing to add four hours

1:15:09to whatever we think we can do.

1:15:12But we have to sit down and figure that out.

1:15:13On a quick look, it's somewhere between four and six hours,

1:15:19at six days a week.

1:15:20And so if,

1:15:24if the decision was just to keep it,

1:15:26the funding where it was,

1:15:28we'd like to say we could do a four hours additional

1:15:33on that funding.

1:15:34Okay. So, so you could continue for the 20,900.

1:15:39A lot of our CBA agreements get a 2% increase for cost.

1:15:42So I understand that's higher in inflation,

1:15:46but then you would be able to do four or six hours

1:15:50the rest of the day based on your level of donations

1:15:53that you have currently.

1:15:55And with,

1:15:58and that that could improve if you had more donations.

1:16:01Yeah. And that was part of the conversation.

1:16:04So,

1:16:06was that we would look at four.

1:16:08So we could offer eight or seven or eight kind of depending

1:16:13if the CBA was to stay the same.

1:16:17But again, we're not looking at an eight hour problem.

1:16:21So it's still not a perfect solution.

1:16:24Does that help with numbers?

1:16:25Yeah. I was just wondering if we just had a continuation.

1:16:30Overall, like to give you a picture.

1:16:31So the draft budget for our,

1:16:35for our drop in and meal program together,

1:16:38cause it's weird,

1:16:38cause they kind of go hand in hand.

1:16:40And for us to separate them is tricky.

1:16:42And we recognize that the money coming from the city

1:16:45is for the drop in program, not for the meal program.

1:16:48Although I can't imagine having a whole bunch of people

1:16:51in a room all day and not feeding them,

1:16:53the grumpy people.

1:16:57It would,

1:16:59it's going to cost us close to a million dollars to run that

1:17:02for a 12 hour thing for three meals a day.

1:17:06It's going to be about that.

1:17:07So hope house is still providing the breakfast.

1:17:09So are they? No, they're not.

1:17:11Oh, they're not. No.

1:17:12Okay. So that just,

1:17:14the timing and everything was just not,

1:17:17wasn't good.

1:17:18Okay. Okay. Great.

1:17:20Thank you.

1:17:21And maybe the two of you could just,

1:17:23why don't you stay up just in case there's another question

1:17:26that comes your way from a,

1:17:28that you can confer on.

1:17:29Alte and then Kate.

1:17:31Thank you very much, Mayor Guthrie.

1:17:33Many of my questions have actually been answered

1:17:35in a different format,

1:17:36but I am going to ask a couple of questions

1:17:38and I apologize if they might seem offensive,

1:17:41but the first question,

1:17:44do we have access to audited statements

1:17:49that would show us where the money is going?

1:17:52Yes.

1:17:53So not obviously not in 2023

1:17:55because our books are not finalized.

1:17:57So in 2024, we'd be happy to provide those.

1:18:00We would love to give you the budget that our budget,

1:18:04even for the program for next year,

1:18:05that would be fantastic.

1:18:06We've always worked with city staff on that.

1:18:08So if council would like to see the budget

1:18:11and all the numbers,

1:18:12we'd be happy to give that to you as well.

1:18:14So annually you do have an audited statement and it's clean.

1:18:18Correct.

1:18:19Okay.

1:18:20The next one, and this is the one that could be offensive.

1:18:22I did have a number of people that emailed me

1:18:24and were concerned about Royal City Mission,

1:18:28receiving funds that were going into capital improvements

1:18:31rather than what we are discussing here.

1:18:33I was wondering if you could outline that.

1:18:35I am aware that there have been bathrooms

1:18:37that have been improved there,

1:18:38but I think you might have got that from a grant

1:18:41that doesn't have anything to do with the city.

1:18:43So if you could please outline whether Royal City Mission

1:18:47is enhancing itself through city money.

1:18:51So the easiest answer is no.

1:18:53I can tell you that the bathrooms were actually paid

1:18:55for by another church that was using our space.

1:18:58We did do capital improvements based on federal grants,

1:19:02which was a walk-in fridge freezer.

1:19:05And then, what was the other one?

1:19:08That's it.

1:19:09Oh, that's it.

1:19:10Yeah, sorry.

1:19:11Thank you.

1:19:12The next question, what I heard you state is that

1:19:15the donations are actually stable,

1:19:18but the numbers being served has increased significantly.

1:19:22So then I understand that proportionately,

1:19:25there is significantly less money being spent

1:19:29from donations per person.

1:19:31Is that correct?

1:19:34Yes.

1:19:35That's simple then.

1:19:36Okay.

1:19:37And finally, you mentioned something

1:19:39that's been bothering me because many of our frontline workers

1:19:44have experienced the same thing,

1:19:47regardless what the service is.

1:19:48Could you please elaborate on the issue of burnout?

1:19:55Well, surprisingly enough,

1:19:57we have done really well with that,

1:19:59but we do have one staff off on a health leave.

1:20:04Watching people suffer daily is hard.

1:20:06It really is.

1:20:07And so again, Mark brought up the thought

1:20:12that we need to pay our staff better

1:20:13and we have no benefits for our staff.

1:20:17So these are all considerations

1:20:18as we're looking at budgeting.

1:20:20So clarify.

1:20:21So you're saying you don't have benefits.

1:20:22When a person's off, they're off without any income.

1:20:25Is that correct?

1:20:28Yeah.

1:20:29Okay. Well, that was a simple answer too.

1:20:31Okay.

1:20:32All right.

1:20:33Thank you very much.

1:20:33I have no further questions.

1:20:34Finally, Councillor Caton, please.

1:20:37Thank you.

1:20:38Thank you, Mr. Mayor.

1:20:39My question was going to be,

1:20:41will they be open if we do not provide the funding?

1:20:44And I think that was answered through them saying

1:20:46that they had a certain amount open for donations.

1:20:49So I think that that's clear now.

1:20:54You okay with that, Kevin?

1:20:56Do you want me to repeat that?

1:20:58No, does it need to be repeated or she's captured it right?

1:21:00She's captured.

1:21:01Okay, perfect.

1:21:01I've got two more questions here.

1:21:03Call her and then I'll work.

1:21:05Thank you, Your Worship.

1:21:08Thank you both for all the work that you do

1:21:10for the City of Guelph.

1:21:14We definitely want to support our community.

1:21:18I think one of the challenges that we're trying to overcome

1:21:22is the increase from 20,000 per month to 63.

1:21:27And I understand that it is the additional hours.

1:21:30It is the adequate pay for staff.

1:21:33Is Royal City exploring other funding opportunities

1:21:36from other organizations?

1:21:38Always.

1:21:39Yeah, so is there any opportunity?

1:21:41I know that the previous data shelter

1:21:44used to receive other funding locally.

1:21:47So would there be ways for us to explore

1:21:50how we can help you stay open, at least for the winter

1:21:54or for the rest of next year,

1:21:57and be able to work with other organizations?

1:22:00What might that look like?

1:22:06It's tricky when the, so the ask was for 12 hours.

1:22:12So, and that's the tricky bit.

1:22:14And so if the ask is for 12 hours,

1:22:18and that's a good ask, right?

1:22:22Like I think that's the right ask.

1:22:23That's what our community needs.

1:22:28It's, we can definitely search for funding from other places.

1:22:32We can even look at like a flexible thing

1:22:36based on income.

1:22:38The problem, like what we're at,

1:22:39you guys are, what we're facing is,

1:22:41we're facing a January, February, March,

1:22:44which are notoriously low.

1:22:46We have gone into our reserves to stay open this year.

1:22:50We have come out of this community benefit agreement

1:22:53further in the hole than when we started.

1:22:56To be able to provide the services.

1:22:58Not in debt, not saying that.

1:23:00We had a small, well, you could have a few months

1:23:03of operating in the bank, right?

1:23:05And so we're not functioning with that at this point.

1:23:08So if we're going into, and we made that decision

1:23:12as an organization to say, we are willing to spend this

1:23:16because we believe this is work worthwhile.

1:23:19And we want to follow through on our commitment

1:23:20to be open 12 hours.

1:23:24It's just if the ask is to maintain that 12 hours.

1:23:28And that's, so we're also, when you look at that $20,000,

1:23:32so that's money that was agreed to in for 2022.

1:23:35So those are money numbers from 2022.

1:23:37We were coming off of COVID.

1:23:38We had no idea we would be at this numbers now.

1:23:43So if you look at, we increased 50% from 2022,

1:23:48from 2021 to 2022, that original ask

1:23:50was based on a 2021 numbers.

1:23:53So we had a 50%.

1:23:54We already were behind when we went into that agreement.

1:23:57Now we're looking at another 30% numbers increase

1:24:00over last year that we're receiving,

1:24:03that we're feeding, that we're having people present.

1:24:05And so this actually, all that does is times three.

1:24:09So it's like the guarantee.

1:24:10It actually doesn't take into consideration the growth

1:24:13and the actual, the need.

1:24:15That was just an easier number to arrive at

1:24:20than unpacking the whole budget and going,

1:24:22because that's what we were asked for.

1:24:25Does that help?

1:24:26Yeah, that really helps.

1:24:27Now I understand how we go from 20,000 for four hours

1:24:32to 60, what was it, 67 for the 12 hours?

1:24:36Yeah, it's just the 20,000 plus 2% times three.

1:24:42That's what it needed to be for the guarantee.

1:24:45But it's actually, it's not based on our current budget.

1:24:49So it's still only proportional.

1:24:53If we want to sit down and talk about the whole budget

1:24:55for the drop and that would actually be another conversation.

1:24:58So, and more.

1:25:01Okay, thank you very much for that.

1:25:03Thank you, your worship.

1:25:05Thank you and councillor O'Rourke.

1:25:07Thanks, Mayor Guthrie.

1:25:09So through you to our delegates,

1:25:12can you help me understand how the funding landscape

1:25:16has changed over the past several years?

1:25:19Cause we don't essentially fund social services, right?

1:25:23And then through COVID,

1:25:26I think you were getting funding from the county

1:25:28because of COVID, we stepped in to fill a gap.

1:25:32And now we are light years away

1:25:35from what that original funding was.

1:25:37And as you know, tomorrow,

1:25:39we need to be looking to take an ax

1:25:40to some of our own services.

1:25:42Okay, so that's where I sit tonight.

1:25:45Not insensitive to the plight of people who are cold

1:25:47and who need a place to be,

1:25:49but I'm looking at what is our responsibility?

1:25:51What are the costs we can contain?

1:25:53So can you help me understand

1:25:55how the funding landscape has changed

1:25:57for you over the past three years?

1:26:05Just trying to, so,

1:26:09we would never received government funding prior to COVID.

1:26:14We actually only got a hand,

1:26:16like maybe one or two grants a year prior to COVID.

1:26:20Through the course of COVID,

1:26:23a lot of organizations, other fellow organizations

1:26:25that were doing drop-in style things

1:26:28got specialized in other areas.

1:26:31And so we became the only place

1:26:34that was open during the day.

1:26:36And so because of that,

1:26:39we definitely did see an increase in our donations

1:26:43over the course of COVID,

1:26:44where most organizations and most charities

1:26:47were actually seeing a decrease.

1:26:48Because of our presence, we did see an increase,

1:26:51which allowed us to expand the programming.

1:26:55The difference was that we could be front,

1:26:58well, Kevin and I would usually be

1:27:00in the executive kind of seats.

1:27:02We were able to do frontline work

1:27:04because there wasn't a lot of executive work to do

1:27:07in the midst of COVID, right?

1:27:09Your meetings were all very, very different.

1:27:11So we were able to do that.

1:27:13Now post, in this kind of scene,

1:27:15we have received money from the county,

1:27:19which we didn't pursue that was offered to us.

1:27:22Even this conversation about the CBA,

1:27:24it wasn't something we went seeking.

1:27:26It was something that was offered

1:27:29that we were invited into.

1:27:32And we continue to look for grants.

1:27:35So we do have, we have,

1:27:39we have, we're actively looking for grants

1:27:42that'll allow us, but those are usually towards

1:27:44capital costs, not operating.

1:27:45And that's where that kind of shift.

1:27:48So we tend to put most of our donations

1:27:50that come in that are for the,

1:27:53for the drop-in or for the meal program,

1:27:54they go towards, it all goes towards operating.

1:27:56And then this would be operating costs.

1:27:58That's kind of the ask.

1:28:00Is that kind of answer? Sorry, it's...

1:28:03Partially, but I know there were changes

1:28:04because the county was funding some

1:28:05and then they reduced their hours.

1:28:07And so we filled that gap

1:28:09and now we're looking to fill the whole 12 hours.

1:28:11So I am struggling with that, to be perfectly honest.

1:28:16I'm wondering, so you mentioned

1:28:19that some organizations really specialized.

1:28:21So have you expanded the services that you provide

1:28:24or are you still providing the same services?

1:28:27Well, yeah, it's expanded.

1:28:29So we used to do dinner.

1:28:32We dinner, dinner in four hours of drop-in

1:28:33essentially is what it was.

1:28:35It's expanded to three meals a day, 12 hours of drop-in.

1:28:39We have a belonging bin storage program

1:28:43for people who have, who are experiencing homelessness.

1:28:46They can have a bin that we store for them

1:28:49that they can access anytime that we're hoping.

1:28:53We have, we're trying to develop recreational programming

1:28:59and all that kind of stuff

1:29:00so that there's more time, more positive times

1:29:05built throughout the day.

1:29:06So those are all things that we've added.

1:29:10It's a lot bigger than it was before.

1:29:15Okay, through you, Meg, I got the last question.

1:29:16So when you're expanding those services,

1:29:19are you then also adding staff, right?

1:29:21And I'm asking you the same question

1:29:23that I've been asking our own staff for a month now, right?

1:29:25Around these choices of expansion.

1:29:29So with those expansions,

1:29:32are you adding more staff, more cost?

1:29:35No, so like the belonging bin,

1:29:38the meal program is something we were already kind of doing.

1:29:40So, and our,

1:29:44we were able to largely fund that with,

1:29:47do that with our current staff

1:29:49and through agreements with other organizations

1:29:53to have partnership on kind of the cooking

1:29:55and the meal program.

1:29:56So we fund, we provide meals out to the 24 hour shelter

1:30:03at the hotel.

1:30:04And so we send food there every day

1:30:06as part of our kind of thing.

1:30:07So we have a partnership with Stepping Stones

1:30:10that allows us to kind of have mutual benefit in there.

1:30:15We haven't added staffing costs since the beginning of the year,

1:30:20basically when we ramped up to 12 hours.

1:30:23And we weren't doing breakfast, we added breakfast.

1:30:26We weren't doing belonging bins, we added belonging bins

1:30:29and it hasn't cost us things out of this money.

1:30:33We've either got grants for the shelves

1:30:35and the bins and that kind of thing,

1:30:37but it hasn't been an operating expense increase.

1:30:42Okay, all right, thanks.

1:30:46Okay, council, thank you.

1:30:47We're gonna go to the next delegate.

1:30:49Thanks to the both of you very much.

1:30:52And then after this delegate,

1:30:55I'm gonna consider council to move into a closed session

1:31:00for some further information.

1:31:03So we'll listen to this delegate first, Paul.

1:31:07Costello from the Ontario Public Interest Research Group.

1:31:10Thank you for joining us, Paul.

1:31:26Good evening, Mr. Mayor, counselors.

1:31:29The Guelph University chapter of OPURG strongly urges

1:31:34that the city of Guelph continue to fund

1:31:38the Royal City Mission.

1:31:39OPURG, which is Ontario Public Interest Research Group,

1:31:44is a campus-based social and environmental justice group

1:31:50that supports student groups and community groups

1:31:53striving to make a difference.

1:31:56I'm on the OPURG Board of Directors

1:31:58and we have a partnership with Royal City Mission.

1:32:05It has been my honor and pleasure to be trusted

1:32:09with frontline volunteer work at the Royal City Mission,

1:32:12doing two-plus shifts a week of two to four hours

1:32:18for about a year around mealtime.

1:32:21Between this and dropping into check-on folks,

1:32:25I witness people with every kind of need and concern,

1:32:30family estrangement, food and housing challenges,

1:32:34and even addiction.

1:32:36At the mission, they can chat with volunteers who care,

1:32:41knowing that their issues are being heard

1:32:44and not being judged.

1:32:47It is where they can also meet supportive friends.

1:32:50Royal City is one of the only places

1:32:53where housing and income challenged people can get this,

1:32:57being processed as sundown by someone with a clipboard

1:33:01and told to find a cot on the floor, does not compare,

1:33:05and is certainly not sufficient.

1:33:07Please fund this much-needed support organization.

1:33:13Well, thank you very much.

1:33:14Let me see if there's a follow-up for you.

1:33:17And there isn't, and thank you for your volunteerism too.

1:33:20Thank you.

1:33:22Okay, that's it for our signed up delegations council.

1:33:27I think I've asked the clerk to put up on the screen

1:33:33a potential motion for us to consider

1:33:36to get some further information in regards to this

1:33:39through a closed session meeting.

1:33:43And it is that the council of the city of Guelph

1:33:46now hold a meeting that is closed to the public

1:33:48pursuant to the municipal act section 2392B and K

1:33:52of the municipal act relating to personal matters

1:33:54but will identify individuals,

1:33:56including municipal or local board employees,

1:33:58and a position, plan, procedure, criteria, or instruction

1:34:02to be applied to any negotiations carried on

1:34:05or to be carried on by or on behalf of the municipality

1:34:10or local board to consider daytime drop-in services update.

1:34:15Councillor Gowar, you're willing to move.

1:34:17Councillor Claussen is willing to second.

1:34:20Is there anything further on that?

1:34:23Don't hear anything.

1:34:24So I'll call the vote.

1:34:25Does anyone, is everyone in favor?

1:34:26Is anyone against moving into closed?

1:34:30That's unanimous then as well.

1:34:33So we are just gonna have a closed session discussion

1:34:36in regards to this matter.

1:34:38We're gonna go into another room to have that.

1:34:40And then when I come back out,

1:34:41I can give a high level summary of the discussion.

1:34:44So just bear with us as we go do that.

1:34:46Okay, thank you very much.

2:19:06Okay, I'd like to call the meeting back to order, please.

2:19:08Thank you so much.

2:19:10As I normally do with coming out of a closed session,

2:19:13there would be a summary,

2:19:14which I'm gonna give a little bit of that right now.

2:19:18But we actually have an actual motion

2:19:21that will be tabled publicly more than just my summary.

2:19:24So we went back there to talk about contractual agreements.

2:19:27We asked questions, we received information,

2:19:30a lot of back and forth on that topic.

2:19:33And that resulted in a motion

2:19:36that's gonna come forward right now.

2:19:38But there is, before we table that motion,

2:19:42there is the motion of receiving the report

2:19:44that's on the agenda today.

2:19:45So I'd like to take care of that first.

2:19:47Councillor Downer is moving that.

2:19:50Boost Till, thank you,

2:19:51is seconding that for receiving information.

2:19:55Can I call the vote on that, please?

2:19:56It looks like I probably can.

2:19:58Yes, is anyone against receiving this as information?

2:20:02No, that's unanimous, so that's great.

2:20:05Thank you very much.

2:20:06Okay, so now we are gonna table a motion

2:20:10that is coming out of the closed session

2:20:13and that will pop up on the screen.

2:20:15And I would ask Councillor Goller, please, to table that.

2:20:19Thank you, and through you, Worship.

2:20:21The motion is that staff be directed to offer an extension

2:20:24of the current pilot program to Royal City Mission

2:20:26to offer drop-in services six days a week

2:20:31at a maximum cost of 21,322 per month.

2:20:35The pilot extension would be from January 1st, 2024

2:20:38to March 31st, 2024, and the total cost of 63,966

2:20:44to be taken from the tax rate operating contingency reserve.

2:20:49Thank you, am I have a seconder for that, please?

2:20:52Okay, I'm gonna go cross in, thank you.

2:20:55And before I call the vote,

2:20:58is there any further questions only on this?

2:21:01Okay, I don't think there's any questions,

2:21:03any comments on this?

2:21:05And I'd like to try to keep us focused

2:21:07so we can keep moving through our agenda,

2:21:08but absolutely a time for that.

2:21:09Councillor Goller, you go first.

2:21:11Thank you, and through you, Worship.

2:21:12Before the pandemic started,

2:21:14the city was not in the business

2:21:16of providing daytime shelter support.

2:21:19It was something that was provided by the community

2:21:22and it was not a municipal responsibility

2:21:25that has changed, services changed during the pandemic.

2:21:29And we've spent a lot of time this year

2:21:31looking at what resources we needed to provide.

2:21:33We have given many directions to our staff team

2:21:39and as a result of some of those directions,

2:21:42the county is hosting a symposium

2:21:44over the winter in January.

2:21:46So we would be looking at that symposium

2:21:49to come up with a better idea

2:21:51of how daytime space should be funded.

2:21:54So this is a stopgap measure temporary for this winter.

2:21:58And then our hope is that we would have

2:22:01a better plan for next year.

2:22:04Thank you so much.

2:22:06Okay, may I call the vote then on this?

2:22:09Looks like I can.

2:22:11Okay, is there anyone against?

2:22:15No one, that's unanimous.

2:22:16So that's the decision on this at this time.

2:22:19Thank you very much again.

2:22:20Thank you for waiting for us to come out of our closed session

2:22:23and I'll consider that matter closed.

2:22:26Before I continue to the next item,

2:22:27Councillor Goller, sorry, over to you.

2:22:29Your worship, I had sent a message

2:22:31to my staff council colleagues expressing the intent

2:22:35to move the second motion contained in the report.

2:22:40But we've heard the advice that we should really wait

2:22:43until the housing symposium is completed over the winter.

2:22:47So can I ask our staff team,

2:22:50do I need to move a motion now for this to come back

2:22:54at some point or could we have a commitment

2:22:56that sometime in May next year, March or thereabouts,

2:23:01we would have an opportunity to bring that direction back

2:23:05to explore what we do with daytime shelter space.

2:23:10Through the mayor to Councillor Goller,

2:23:12I would certainly my advice and recommendation

2:23:14will be that you wait until the housing symposium

2:23:16and seek the recommendations

2:23:18and the advice that comes out of that.

2:23:20I don't want to presume the outcome of that,

2:23:22but I think this matter will be considered

2:23:24and we'll follow up with our county colleagues.

2:23:26And so any reporting back to city council

2:23:28will flow from that housing symposium.

2:23:31I would imagine there's going to be a number

2:23:33of recommendations for you to consider.

2:23:35This would be only one of them.

2:23:37So rather than a specific requirement

2:23:41that we report back, I would simply say

2:23:43that you know that housing symposium is coming

2:23:45and you'll be receiving recommendations.

2:23:46And I think that's the most appropriate method

2:23:49for this to continue the conversation forward.

2:23:52Okay, thank you for that.

2:23:53Thank you, worship.

2:23:54Great, thank you, Councillor.

2:23:56So this item is closed and I just do want to recognize

2:23:59our guest in the audience,

2:24:00also the chair from the county services.

2:24:03Thank you chair for coming and hearing this conversation

2:24:07and being a part of it.

2:24:08Thank you very much.

2:24:10So with that, I'm going to move on

2:24:13to the intimate partner violence agenda item.