Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre in Scarborough, Ontario breaks ground at celebratory event hosted by Scarborough Health Network, United Way Greater Toronto and the YMCA of Greater Toronto

The innovative hub will be a leading example of community-based wrap-around care.

SCARBOROUGH, ON, June 19, 2023 /CNW/ - After more than 10 years of community advocacy and engagement, the Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre at 1355 Bridletowne Circle broke ground today at an official ceremony, where project plans for the new centre were unveiled to a crowd that included the Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, Jean Yip, Member of Parliament for Scarborough-Agincourt, Jennifer McKelvie, Deputy Mayor of Toronto, and more.

The Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre (BNC) is a first-of-its kind project in Ontario. The community hub designed by Kaisian Architects will house an innovative collaboration between Scarborough Health Network (SHN), the YMCA of Greater Toronto (YMCA), and United Way Greater Toronto (UWGT) that will bring vital programs, healthcare, and inclusive community spaces together under one roof as a leading example of community-based wrap-around care.

Located in the Bridletowne neighbourhood of Scarborough, the Centre will be built on the site of the former Timothy Eaton School on Bridletowne Circle in the Warden and Finch area, a short distance from SHN's Birchmount hospital. This one-of-a-kind community hub will offer:

• The YMCA Centre of Community will include a health and fitness facility and licensed childcare centre that can improve the well-being of local residents and families, patients and caregivers.
  
  
• SHN's Dialysis and Chronic Disease Clinics, expanding their hemodialysis and chronic kidney disease programs with 45 dialysis treatment stations and nine home-training stations.
  
  
• UWGT space will house a network of local agencies offering social services, physical and mental health promotion and culturally specific programming for local East and Southeast Asian communities.
  
  
• Shared space for community and cultural events.
  
  
• Health-focused agencies CareFirst Seniors and Community Services Association, Hong Fook Mental Health Association and Senior Peoples Living Connected will reside beside SHN's facilities to further support patients, caregivers and the rising senior population in the neighbourhood.

Community service agencies Agincourt Community Services Association, West Scarborough Community Neighbourhood Centre, Support.Enhance.Access.Services, Community Living Toronto, Council of Agencies Serving South Asians and Groupe Artisanal Féminin Francophone de l'Ontario at Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre will co-locate in the UWGT space of the community hub to allow for deeper collaboration and coordination of programs and services to support the social determinants of health.

The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario, addressed attendees by acknowledging the importance of the community hub. Also in attendance was Jean Yip, Member of Parliament for Scarborough-Agincourt; Jennifer McKelvie, Deputy Mayor of Toronto; Amarjot Sandhu, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Infrastructure and MPP Brampton-West; Vijay Thanigasalam, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Infrastructure and MPP Scarborough-Rouge Park; Aris Babikian, MPP Scarborough-Agincourt and Nick Mantas, Councillor Scarborough-Agincourt.

The Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre aims to improve the health and wellbeing of Scarborough residents and will serve as a model for the way care should be provided across the province.

Scarborough Health Network's share of the project is a priority within the Love, Scarborough campaign, and welcomed a transformational gift of a combined $5 million from Rogers and Lisa Rogers, with $2 million earmarked for Bridletowne.

The project is expected to be completed in 2026.

To learn more and to see project renderings, please visit bridletowne.ca.

Quotes

"Community hubs play a pivotal role in building strong communities where Canadians want to live, work, and raise their families. Our government is pleased to support the YMCA of Greater Toronto with the Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre project. Offering health and fitness facilities, youth programming, childcare and after-school programs, and access to essential services, the centre will be a welcoming, accessible, and inclusive heart of the neighbourhood that residents will benefit from for decades to come. With the YMCA working together with the Scarborough Health Network and the United Way, this is truly a community effort."

- Jean Yip, Member of Parliament for Scarborough—Agincourt, on behalf of the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities

"The ground-breaking of the Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre marks an exciting milestone for families in Scarborough. This new centre will be an important hub for community services, gatherings and recreation and will help to ensure that residents of this growing community have more access to convenient care, close to home."

– The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario

"The Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre sets a new standard for what is possible when local residents, anchor organizations, and governments come together in support of our shared community.  By removing barriers to social, recreational, and health programming, this holistic hub will foster a further sense of community in Bridletowne, and ensure residents have access to the tools, resources, and opportunities necessary to achieve their true potential."

– Jennifer McKelvie, Deputy Mayor of Toronto

"The Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre will innovate the way we provide kidney care to our Scarborough community. Offering dialysis outside of a hospital setting is a holistic approach to chronic disease treatment and management that will change the health outcomes for our patients. Generous donors are helping make this possible, and we know the future is bright for healthcare in Scarborough. We can't wait until Bridletowne officially opens its' doors."

– David Graham, President & CEO, Scarborough Health Network

"United Way Greater Toronto's support of community hubs was galvanized during the pandemic as they became focal points for community crisis response. What was most evident was the value of co-location, having neighbouring agencies with complementary services and programs work together to serve the community, it increased the likelihood that residents could access the supports needed for them to thrive. Now, as Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre breaks ground, our commitment and collaboration in support of this community hub is spurred by our knowing that it will not only change the face of the neighbourhood, but transform the lives of those who live there."

– Daniele Zanotti, President and CEO of United Way Greater Toronto

"After more than a decade of hard work, I am delighted to celebrate this milestone for the Bridletowne Neighbourhood Centre. The collective efforts and perseverance of local residents, government, community partners and our charity have made today possible. The Centre will bring vital and urgently needed programs and supports to the Scarborough-Agincourt community in an accessible and welcoming space. It will be a community anchor for generations to come."

– Medhat Mahdy, President & CEO of the YMCA of Greater Toronto.

"Together with Rogers Communications and Lisa Rogers, I'm honoured to be part of this incredible initiative to support equitable healthcare in Toronto. The new centre will help bring this vision to life and significantly change the health outcomes of our community." 

– Edward Rogers, Honorary Co-Chair of Love, Scarborough, the fundraising campaign for Scarborough Health Network, and Chairman, Rogers Communications.

SOURCE United Way Greater Toronto

Media Contacts: Lindsay Kwan, Communications Manager - United Way Greater Toronto, 416-732-9700, [email protected]; Kyla Tymchen, Manager, Marketing & Communications - SHN Foundation, 416-671-8394, [email protected]; Chris Meyer, Senior Manager, External Communications - YMCA of Greater Toronto, 416-994-6712, [email protected]