A new Oshawa HART Hub addiction recovery centre has officially opened its doors in downtown Oshawa as part of Ontario’s shift away from supervised consumption sites toward a recovery-focused model of care.
The new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment Hub, located at 78 Richmond St. W., will offer clients access to clinical, social service and other care providers in a single coordinated location. The facility is one of 29 HART Hubs rolling out across the province following the gradual closure of supervised consumption sites.
The Oshawa hub will provide a comprehensive range of services including primary care, mental health services, case management for mental health conditions and addictions, case management for income supports, social services and employment, housing resources, and Indigenous services.
This marks the second HART Hub in Durham Region, following the successful opening of a Whitby location earlier this year. The expansion reflects the growing need for integrated mental health and addictions support across the region.
The Ontario government said the new hub is part of a $560 million investment to open over two dozen HART Hubs provincewide, a move the government says will increase public safety while offering support for people experiencing mental health, housing and addiction challenges to achieve long-term recovery.
Unlike safe consumption sites, HART Hubs do not offer safer supply, supervised drug consumption or needle exchange programs. The model represents a fundamental shift toward abstinence-based recovery support.
In 2024, Premier Doug Ford’s government banned consumption sites within 200 metres of a school or daycare, targeting 10 sites across the province for closure by the end of March 2025. Most of those sites chose to convert to HART Hubs under the province’s new abstinence-based model. The government has since banned the opening of new consumption sites altogether.
Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Vijay Thanigasalam said the government is building a stronger, more connected system of mental health and addictions care that better reflects the needs of communities and focuses on lasting recovery.
The Oshawa HART Hub is being led by the Canadian Mental Health Association Durham, with support from a coalition of community organizations including the Mission United Program, Mission United Physicians Services, The Back Door Mission, Lakeridge Health Oshawa, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, Durham Community Health Clinic, John Howard Society and the Region of Durham.
The province has also announced that HART Hubs will add close to 900 supportive housing units across Ontario.
Oshawa Mayor Dan Carter welcomed the new facility, thanking the Province of Ontario for its significant investment and for expanding the HART Hub network into Oshawa in partnership with CMHA Durham.
