Manitoba·NewA Winnipeg organization that works to support the city’s homeless showed off its newly renovated housing facility on Monday, as the work to completely renovate its Martha Street building continues.Downtown Winnipeg organization plans to renovate entire Martha Street building at a cost of $18MCBC News · Posted: Sep 22, 2025 10:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 14 minutes agoMain Street Project executive director Jamil Mahmood spoke on Monday as the organization that works to support the city’s homeless showed off its newly renovated housing facility on Monday. (Darin Morash/CBC)A Winnipeg organization that works to support the city’s homeless showed off its newly renovated housing facility on Monday, as the work to completely renovate its Martha Street building continues.Main Street Project, a local charity and non-profit that provides services to people experiencing homelessness, invited guests to get their first look at the organization’s newly-renovated housing facility at 71 Martha St.The renovations were completed as Phase 1 of what the organization said will be a complete renovation of the entire Martha Street building, which will also expand the facility, and is expected to cost approximately $18 million. Main Street Project executive director Jamil Mahmood said renovations to the housing facility included newly renovated rooms, a new common area and a new kitchen.He said the rooms will offer more privacy for those living in the space, while the new kitchen and commons area will offer a modern and comfortable space for people to gather. Main Street Project executive director Jamil Mahmood gave a tour of the organization’s newly renovated housing facility on Monday, which includes newly renovated rooms, a new common area, and a new kitchen. (Darin Morash/CBC)”The whole building will be redone top to bottom,” Mahmood said. “The main focus of this was to make the spaces a lot nicer for the people who live here. “We often said when we started, this project was really to bring the love that we give to the community everyday into a physical manifestation, and make the building reflect that as well.”The upgraded facility includes 28 suites with 34 beds, and will serve as what Main Street Project is calling a “fully accessible, environmentally sustainable, and supportive housing resource for the community.”It also includes a private courtyard, fully renovated and accessible washrooms, and a staff service desk for the 24/7 wraparound support offered through the organization’s staff.Next phase to take 2 yearsThe second phase of the Martha Street construction is scheduled to begin in October of this year, and is expected to last approximately two years. Phase 2 includes plans for the redevelopment of the organization’s withdrawal management services program and the organization’s kitchen services, as well as additional case management offices, cultural space, medical offices, a garage, and program space for their mobile outreach program, along with a new welcoming entry to the facility. “These upgrades were long overdue,” Mahmood said. “We know supportive housing is the key to ending chronic homelessness in Winnipeg, and we’re thrilled we can offer a more accessible and dignified supportive housing space to the community we serve.”He said the Martha Street housing facility originally opened in 1993, and upgrades were badly needed, as the building was falling into disrepair. The organization’s 71 Martha St. location was originally home to its Mainstay program, which offered transitional housing and wraparound supports. That program was moved to 777 Sargent Ave. last year, where it now primarily houses those who previously lived in encampments as part of the province’s Your Way Home homelessness strategy.The renovated housing facility at 71 Martha St. will, for the time being, house people in 28 suites who are in the organization’s detox program. When all renovations are completed on the building the Mainstay program is expected to move back in. The project was funded by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Greener Affordable Housing program ($3,413,976) and Affordable Housing Fund ($680,000). Other funders include End Homelessness Winnipeg ($2,500,000), Housing Infrastructure and Communities Canada’s Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program ($10,695,874), The Winnipeg Foundation ($100,000), and United Way Winnipeg ($20,000).
Main Street Project unveils renos to ‘accessible and dignified supportive housing space’
