A new home coming to Community Living Cambridge

A new place to call home is coming for Community Living Cambridge.

In the next few months, Community Living Cambridge (CLC) will break ground for a new 20-unit housing development on its Hespeler Road property.

Since 1954, the agency has provided supported living options for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

CLC operates 25 group homes throughout the city with a focus on safe, quality housing where people can create a caring home environment grounded in dignity and individual choice.

But with over 800 people on the wait list for group living in Waterloo Region, Lawna Paulos, executive director at CLC, says timing could not be better for the expansion.

“Our mission has always been to provide as much support as we can. For us, this means that we have the ability to provide more services to people who are on the wait list and also for those who might be in crisis,” Paulos said.

Paulos says CLC is excited for the opportunity to expand.

“We are hoping, if all the stars align, that we can start building late summer or early fall. I’m sure it will take a bit of time to build and hopefully it will be ready in a year or so.”

Paulos says the CLC mission is to provide the best services possible for those with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

“Our current site at 162 Hespeler Rd., includes our administrative office, a building for day programming and we also have an older building that offers housing and support for individuals with developmental disabilities,” Paulos said.

Built in 1970, Paulos says it’s time that the old building be replaced.  

“It was built a very long time ago. It’s at the point now, where we would really like to replace it,” Paulos said.

The new housing development will be located behind the original building, and will expand from 14 units, to 20.

“It’s a new replacement for what we already have. We don’t know what we will do with that existing building right now, but we will wait and see once the new building is ready, and then we’ll go from there,” Paulos said.

“This new building will be for adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities. They might have other issues also, not just developmental. There might also be some physical aspects that go along with that, too.”

CLC is currently working with the City of Cambridge in planning for the new housing development.

Paulos says original building plans have been completed, and funding comes from the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services, for developmental disabilities.

“We will now work towards our financing. We are not sure what that will look like, but one of those things will include an application for co-investment through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC),” Paulos said.

“We also received a grant from CMHC to support us with all of the initial work including the drawings, plans, and the application. So, that was very helpful as well.”

Today, CLC employs more than 300 staff.

The agency supports hundreds of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in 24 group homes, apartments, and in the community and offers supported living, work, volunteering, recreational, and adult development programming.

“The wait list just proves that there is a need,” Paulos said.  

“We are very lucky to have this property on Hespeler Road. And that’s why we really want to take advantage of it.”

With a growing demand for services, donations support unfunded budget items that greatly improve the quality of life for individuals and families and allows CLC to develop programs and partnerships to meet the changing needs of the community.

To donate or for more information, visit here.