Lambton County officials are calling on the province to extend its funding commitment toward a local mobile crisis response team.
It was one of many issues brought forward at this week's Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) Conference.
In May, the Ontario government pledged $2.5 million toward the Community Health Integrated Care Pilot (CHIC), over the next three years. Since the program was launched in June, its helped dozens of people in distress.
One paramedic and one substance use navigator from Bluewater Health work from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. seven days a week. They travel around the county, assisting those struggling with mental health and addiction.
Lambton Warden Kevin Marriott said the delegation told Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Michael Tibollo that funding from the province needs to keep flowing toward this important project.
"The CHIC pilot has been able to divert a lot of people away from the emergency room by making house calls basically," said Marriott. "We don't have long-term funding for that since it's a pilot. We're trying to show the government that it's working, and funding this for the long term is worth the money. It also makes things more efficient for people who have trouble getting out of their houses."
Marriott said they also had a good chat with Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Paul Calandra to seek funding for the development of affordable and supportive housing.
He said there are a number of planned affordable housing projects in Sarnia that need the province's support, including on Kathleen Avenue, Victoria Street, and the St. Bartholomew Church property.
"It's really tough getting the up front dollars to build these," said Marriott. "We have to have a commitment from both the province and the feds in order to make these go forward."
The Kathleen Avenue project was granted $1.1 million through the Canada-Ontario Community Housing Initiative (COCHI) for this year, but Warden Marriott said it's not enough.
He said there are two other possible sites for housing developments, but details of those haven't been made public.
The Lambton delegation also met with Minister of Tourism, Culture and Gaming Stan Cho to advocate for enhanced provincial operating funding for Lambton County’s library, museum and archives sites.
Marriott said overall they came out of AMO with some optimism for the future.
"You get a feeling when you come out of a delegation about how it went," he said. "All of them went amazingly well. We've been building relationships with them over the past year or two, and it's obvious that it's paying off."
Sessions and speakers during AMO also spoke about public safety, climate change, Indigenous engagement, access to health care services, artificial intelligence, and more.
Many of the decisions about funding likely won't happen until the 2025-2026 Ontario budget, which will be unveiled in March 2025.