Construction is officially underway on a new Indigenous Hub in Toronto.

Various partners and allies of Anishnawbe Health Toronto attended the site on Front and Cherry Streets in the West Don Lands to mark construction of the four-storey, 45,000-squre foot facility. A further 700 attended virtually.

The ceremony, which took place on National Indigenous Peoples Day, featured a pipe ceremony conducted by Cree Traditional Healer Pete Keshane. The event also featured First Nations drummers Young Creek and four fancy shawl dancers, reflecting the star blanket shawl-inspired design of the new home for Anishnawbe Health Toronto on the Hub.  

Now under construction, the Indigenous Hub will include the new home of Anishnawbe Health Toronto (AHT), the Miziwe Biik Training Institute, a childcare and family centre, the Canary House mixed-use condominium building, and a purpose-built rental building.

The facility will become one of the first mixed-use, purpose-built Indigenous hubs in the country.

"Today's groundbreaking is a major milestone, years in the making. The site will be a gathering place for the Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and a home to support the reclamation of culture and identity,” said AHT executive director Joe Hester. “In fact, this project will advance on many fronts including the restoration of traditional medicines and green space to this block that has an industrial past; implementing architectural guidelines for Indigenous design developed for this project; and to land ownership and lease agreements with development partners that will guide and support the Hub forward for seven generations and more

In 2015, as a legacy of the Pan Am/Parapan AM Games, the Province of Ontario transferred the land to Anishnawbe Health Toronto. AHT then partnered with Dream, Dream Impact Trust, Kilmer Group and Tricon Residential to co-develop the site for residential and retail uses.

The Anishnawbe Health Toronto Community Health Centre will offer holistic health programs and services that integrate Indigenous and Western approaches. A majority of the construction of the Health Centre will be funded by the Ministry of Health with the rest being funded by community support from donors through Anishnawbe Health Foundation. The construction of the Health Centre will be funded by the Ministry of Health with community support from donors through Anishnawbe Health Foundation.

Neighbouring the health centre is the Miziwe Biik Training Institute, which will serve as the employment and training partner. The new building will offer a hands-on carpentry workshop, tutoring classrooms, a business incubator and other multi-purpose training spaces for programming and gatherings, as well as a childcare and family centre. The Institute will enable Miziwe Biik to double its physical space, helping to support 700 to 1,000 Indigenous people secure new jobs annually.

The City of Toronto has contributed $7.8 million towards the creation of a new early learning and childcare centre for 49 children as well as a new Indigenous EarlyON Child and Family Centre, which will be located in the Miziwe Biik Training Institute. These centres will offer programs for children and families that will support and celebrate Indigenous knowledge, history and values.

"The Miziwe Biik Training Institute is an opportunity to realize the full potential of the GTA's Indigenous community and provide the local population with the skills and credentials to attain good paying jobs,” said Miziwe Biik executive director Nancy Martin. The Institute is an investment in the future prosperity of the Indigenous community living in the GTA and will contribute to Canada's economic recovery.”

The new home for the Health Centre is scheduled to open by the end of 2022 while the rest of the Indigenous Hub's completion is slated for 2024.

Featured image: Indigenous Hub Groundbreaking. From left: Pete Keshane, Healer; Andre Morriseau, Chair, Anishnawbe Health Foundation (AHT); Stephen Diamond, Chair, Waterfront Toronto; Mayor John Tory, City of Toronto; Joe Hester, Executive Director, AHT; Nancy Martin, Executive Director, Miziwe Biik; Marian Jacko, President, AHT; Parliamentary Assistant MPP Robin Martin; Ken Tanenbaum, Vice-Chair of Kilmer Group. (Red Works Photography)