CALGARY

Hope grows at grand opening of Mustard Seed’s 1010 Centre

Colleen Schmidt CTV Calgary
Published Friday, May 29, 2015 1:31PM MDT

Hope Grows Here, 1010 Centre, Mustard Seed, The Se

The centre provides support for residents who are looking for stable, independent housing.

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The Mustard Seed has been helping low income Calgarians for years and on Friday officially opened its sustainable apartment building in the heart of the city.

The 1010 Centre on the corner of 10^th Avenue and Centre Street South has been moving in residents since last year and provides private apartments for about 200 people.

“Everyone at The Mustard Seed understands that ending homelessness is more than just providing a roof over their heads. It is also about bringing people to a place of strength and independence. The 1010 Centre accomplishes that. It is a safe haven for 224 men and women, who might otherwise be homeless, and a place where they can receive support and assistance to achieve their individual goals,” said Stephen Wile, CEO of The Mustard Seed.

The $60M project offers residents from a wide variety of backgrounds a safe, secure environment to call home and each unit rents for between $550 and $850 a month.

The facility also has support workers that meet with residents at least once a week and they are assigned a staff member when they move in.

Some of the perks at the new centre include, free access to a computer lab, employment coaching, bike storage, housekeeping services, free tenant insurance and health care.

Darren has struggled with alcoholism for a decade and says his new home is the first step to a better life for him.

“They’re creating sort of a community type environment. I’ve never gotten to know so many neighbours as I have here and there’s a lot of awesome stories here. Everybody is here for a different reason, whether it’s just for working or for extra help for whatever help that they need with their issues and neighbours have gotten to know each other, there’s a lot of different programs a person can join here and that’s one of the reasons I like being here,” he said. “I have nothing but gratitude for what the Mustard Seed’s done for me and the help I’ve gotten here.”

There are currently about 3,000 homeless in Calgary and the Seed and its partner agencies are working to raise $120 M to build affordable, sustainable housing through the RESOLVE Campaign.

For more information on the 1010 Centre, click HERE.