"We had two complete suits purchased for $2,000 a piece and lots of bathroom suits and bed suits," Willis said. "We were just overcome by the generosity of the community." - Victor Willis, executive director at PARC
They came in droves to see what had been built. Residents scanned the rooms of Edmond Place, oohed and awed at the custom built furniture, fresh paint and shiny floors - and then opened their wallets to help Parkdale's newest supportive housing unit.
More than 500 people made their way through Edmond Place, guided by PARC Ambassadors, at the Home Opener hosted by the Parkdale Activity Recreation Centre (PARC) and Habitat Services on Nov. 18.
"Twenty per cent or more were people from the community," said Victor Willis, the executive director at PARC. "We had people just walk by and say, hey what's going on, and come in."
They heard about services to be offered to future tenants of Edmond Place, at 194 Dowling Ave, which was built to support people with mental health and addiction issues.
With the official opening, PARC has now made good on its commitment made years ago to raise the bar on supportive housing in Toronto, said Willis.
"That's not just my opinion," he said. "So many of the comments that we heard back were people saying that the place is so great."
Built in the early 1900s the building was originally 12 luxury apartments, but in the early 1990s those were divided into tiny rooms to create one of Toronto's largest boarding houses. It became home to some of the city's most vulnerable residents until Sept. 16, 1998 when a fire broke out on the second floor landing, killing two people and leaving 48 others homeless.
PARC started work to fundraise and then build Edmond Place about three years ago after acquiring the building, which sat empty for 10 years before it was expropriated by the city. The nearly complete $6.9-million renovation created 29 new units and various common spaces. Tenants will have constant security and support programs to allow them to live successfully and independently.
So far five units are committed to people and Willis said PARC is now working with them on what they are going to bring and how to diminish the possibility of bringing in bedbugs.
The units are furnished, but if tenants have a treasured piece of furniture they will do what they can to make sure it is cleaned or steamed so they can bring it.
"We are just working out a strategy now on how to move people in and make sure they don't move in along with hitchhikers and to do it in a way that isn't intrusive or stigmatizing," he said.
Willis said they are hoping to have about 15 of the units paired with future tenants by the end of the week and early December he expects the majority of the units will committed.
"As we look at the people who have applied our sense is that it really is an enormous improvement on their current living situations," Willis said. "We have people who are in really precarious housing."
Tenants are scheduled to move in early January, and until then, Willis said PARC will continue to chip away at the $200,000 they still have owing on the building. That effort, he said, has received tremendous support from the community, in particular from the Boulevard Club in south Parkdale.
"The Boulevard Gives Back has raised for PARC $25,000, so that is a huge amount that helps us out," Willis said.
The Nov. 18 Home Opener event netted in the area of $10,000 through donations at the door, the silent auction and people committing money to buy items needed for the suits like towels and toasters.
"We had two complete suits purchased for $2,000 a piece and lots of bathroom suits and bed suits," Willis said. "We were just overcome by the generosity of the community."