Windsor city council unanimously approved a motion regarding the latest update from the Housing Hub Consultation and Architectural Feasibility Study.
The housing hub has been proposed to address homelessness in the city, and would expand on the success of the Housing, Homelessness and Health Hub that has been operating out of former Water World building that opened during the pandemic.
This was the first step in the process to allow officials to look for a permanent location for the hub.
The study developed by Glos Arch + Eng detailed that a fully operational Housing Hub come with a broad range of in-house supports, and be in close proximity to emergency shelters, health supports, harm reduction pharmacies, and other core community agencies.
It also laid out that the hub it would contain affordable housing units and would have flexible spaces that can change with the needs of the community.
Ward 6 councillor Jo-Anne Gignac says approval by council will signal to partners in the community and at various levels of government that this is a worthwhile endeavour.
"We were clear at the committee level that we didn't want to see us settling for a small site that has to be expanded. We want that extra room to provide community space, provide some breathing room for people who are in extraordinary circumstances that do need help."
Ward 1 councillor Fred Francis says an opportunity exists where the city can create something innovative to deal with a complex problem, which will help in attracting the funds necessary to get it off the ground.
"Obviously the City will have to pay its fair share, no doubt about it. But to be able to create something, a Windsor made solution, to a very complex and complicated problem if we do it right and if it works the funding from the provincial government and the federal government will be there."
While a location hasn't been selected yet, it will be located somewhere in Ward 3.
Outgoing councillor Rino Bortolin says if this is a 40,000 square foot site that doesn't have the full services and partnerships it will fail.
He says making sure the minimum services are secured and finding the right location will be key to having it ultimately be a success.
"As much as we are excited to get the car out of the garage so to speak, we have to understand that if there isn't funding for mental health, if there isn't funding for additional addictions beds, this won't succeed. Those gaps will continue to be there."
The consultant who created the report for council says the new housing hub won't be up and running for four or five years, though many councillors expressed an interest on Tuesday in doing whatever they could to speed up the process.
Once a site has been selected, then officials will move on to designing the hubs components and eventually on to construction.