TBDSSAB Receives $584,150 from the Social Services Relief Fund
April 9, 2020 – The District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board (TBDSSAB)
will receive $584,150 from the Social Services Relief Fund (SSRF) to assist vulnerable
populations in the District of Thunder Bay.
At the end of March, the provincial government announced the SSRF, a $200 million
commitment in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. $148 million of this fund is provided by the
Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) through the Consolidated Homelessness
Prevention Initiative (CHPI). In order to enable communities to immediately respond to the
COVID-19 crisis, MMAH is providing 50% of the allocation immediately, and will review the
distribution of the remaining funds in the coming months.
Under the CHPI SSRF, TBDSSAB will receive $584,150, and is eligible for up to $1,168,300 in
2020-21.
CHPI SSRF is intended to be flexible to help a diverse range of vulnerable people in need in our
communities, including people living in community housing, supportive housing, people with low
incomes, social assistance recipients, those that are experiencing homelessness, and others
who require social services support. The funds can be used towards building homeless shelter
capacity (not including capital expenditures); use of motels or hotels; housing allowances;
transportation costs; food and supplies; enhanced cleaning services; non-medical staffing
requirements; protective equipment; in community housing and supportive housing to assist with
housing costs for in-situ tenants; rent bank and emergency energy funds; and community
outreach to support seniors in self-isolation.
To this point, TBDSSAB has secured access for up to 170 hotel rooms for social distancing and
isolation purposes if necessary, and partnerships with community agencies to provide support to
people who need to isolate or be quarantined.
TBDSSAB staff have been reaching out to housing tenants to check in and offer supports and
increased outreach for the people we serve. Staff have also been in contact with non-profit
housing providers throughout the District to support enhanced cleaning capacity and social
distancing in all community housing properties.
We have also established the CHPI Emergency Pandemic Fund to provide financial support to
organizations that are experiencing increased or new costs in supporting people experiencing
homelessness or preventing homelessness due to the COVID-19 virus. Application forms for the
CHPI Emergency Pandemic Fund have been distributed to service providers and member municipalities, and applications are still being accepted. Application information can be found on
our website here: https://www.tbdssab.ca/housing/homelessness-prevention/.
“TBDSSAB and the Province of Ontario recognize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the
vulnerable residents of the District of Thunder Bay,” says Lucy Kloosterhuis, Board Chair,
TBDSSAB. “The Social Services Relief Fund will help to mitigate some of the effects of this
crisis in our District.”
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Contact: Kristyn Lovato-Day, Acting Supervisor, Communication & Engagement
807-766-4219 or 807-633-5193 (cell)
Download: TBDSSAB receives Social Services Relief Funding(PDF)