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Staff brew coffee, passersby stop at a takeout window for a quick bite and a group of friends play cards upstairs: Things are slowly returning to normal at the Capital City Mission.
The drop-in centre at the corner of Rideau and Cobourg streets reopened Wednesday, more than a month after an SUV slammed into the building’s entrance at opening time, killing a man in his 70s and injuring four others.
In a statement to CBC, Ottawa police said the Feb. 25 incident remains under investigation.
“It’s almost like a sombre joy,” Keltie Davidson, the mission’s executive director, said of the reopening.
“We’ve cried together as we’ve reflected on the loss, but we’ve also … talked about how much we’ve missed each other and missed having this space and community.”
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Jennifer Gingras, a regular at the drop-in before the crash, was there on Thursday morning.
“I don’t think there’s any word to describe this place being back open again, what it’s meant to me,” she said.
Gingras, who lives in social housing downtown, said the Capital Mission helped her navigate Ottawa’s social services and feel less alone.
Diane Meldrum, another regular, comes to the community space for bible study and to socialize.
“Meeting people, new people, it helps when you’re living on your own,” she said. “Not coming here when they were [closed], I was totally lost.”
Edward Logan said he’s grateful the centre has reopened and was glad to see some of his friends, but he’s also aware of the “mixed feelings.”
“The floor has been replaced, but you can remember what happened there,” he said.
Repairs ongoing
On Thursday, sunlight streamed through an open door that’s held together with plywood and tape. The large windows are still covered in paper.
“You’ll notice inside it’s quite a bit darker than it usually is,” Davidson said, adding there are still significant repairs to be made.
Keltie Davidson, executive director of the Capital City Mission, says the drop-in centre is planning a memorial for the client who was killed in a crash at the building in February. (Jacob Taillefer Racine/CBC)
There’s no timeline for when that work will be complete. Davidson said in the meantime, the drop-in will operate with reduced hours.
She said a crisis intervention therapist will be on site next week to help clients who are still struggling.
“There’s community members who don’t feel safe coming back to the building yet because of what happened,” she said.
Davidson said the centre is also planning a memorial service to honour the man who was killed in the crash.
“We’re sort of making the most of what’s happening now and almost looking forward to sort of a second reopening when things feel a little bit more complete,” she said.