Interview with the Warden - May 28th, 2026

Thursday, 28 May 2026 10:33

Warden Marcus Ryan talked about the current status of the Homeless Service Centre.

OXFORD - The Homeless Support Centre was a hot topic on the Oxford County Council agenda.

Lots of people packed council chambers during yesterday's meeting. Council heard four delegations from members of the community sharing their thoughts and concerns.

Oxford County has has made an offer to buy the former YMCA building on Dundas Street in Woodstock and the deal is set to be finalized tomorrow.

Warden Marcus Ryan says municipal councils go into closed session to discuss purchasing property all of the time, to make sure they get the best price. If council revealed how much it was willing to spend in open session, he says the price would have gone up.

"If we had done that in open session, we would have spent the full amount. As it turns out, we saved $580,000 between what was being asked and what we ultimately paid which is 0.7 percent or almost three quarters of a percent of a tax increase."

The Woodstock Ingersoll Echo broke the news about the real estate deal almost two weeks ago, and the county released a statement on the matter a few days later.

Council also received a report from staff yesterday, recommending that the county skip the Request For Proposals (RFP) process when it comes to hiring a business to renovate the building. The Warden says the county had previously hired an architectural firm to assess the building before making the offer to buy it.

"They (staff) recommended that we keep going with that company because they are already familiar with us, what want to use the property for and the building. The other thing is this architect has already done at least three or four similar homeless support centres around the province already, so they're familiar in other situations with a similar kind of service."

He adds this firm will also play a role in the public consultation process that council will hear more about next month.

The Warden also answered some questions about how this centre will operate. He said it should be up and running by 2028, because the county already has deals with Operation Sharing to offer daytime and night time shelters. He said specifics regarding the operation of the Homeless Service Centre and whether Operation Sharing would be involved, will be determined by the incoming Oxford County Council.

Once it is up and running, Warden Ryan says the centre will offer 24/7 shelter services, in addition to supports to help individuals transition out of homelessness. If a person is experiencing mental health and addictions struggles, the HART Hub Wellness Centre would assist them. Warden Ryan says some individuals may also need employment resources or domestic violence supports.

During his interview on the Heart FM Morning Show today, Warden Ryan also briefly talked about the Buy Ontario Act. You can listen to the full interview below: