The Touchstone drop-in officially opened at 555 Broadway on December 8, 2025, and not a day too soon. The new space is larger, more functional, and thoughtfully designed.
At the former Erin St location, the offices and the drop-in overlapped, making programming challenging. “It was too small,” says Lambert Baiden, the drop-in coordinator. “We couldn’t handle any events, and it was overcrowded.”
The tables in the staff boardroom doubled as a ping-pong table. If one person wanted to watch a movie and another person wanted to play video games, someone had to wait. “Now we have a luxury of options,” Lambert explains. “We can accommodate people with different interests at the same time, and we are able to have events without disturbing offices.”
Designed with participants’ needs at the forefront, the Broadway drop‑in recognizes the complex challenges many face—including homelessness, food insecurity, and limited transportation “The challenges participants face here [in Winnipeg] are different than ones that live rurally,” says Lambert. The drop-in offers laundry facilities, a full kitchen, and a clean and comfortable place to keep warm. It also distributes clothing donations and runs a food bank, its deep freezers and shelves stocked by Harvest MB and the Leftovers Foundation.
Not only that, but the new location also features a multi-purpose area that can function as a confidential meeting place, a quiet room, a workshop space, or even a health clinic.
The atmosphere in the Broadway drop-in is noticeably different from the Erin Street space. Participants struggled to make it to the old location because of its distance from the places they lived. Now people come every day. “It feels very homey now,” Lambert says. “Participants feel safe. And that’s the environment we want to create.”
More improvements are still ahead. Plans are underway to add a shower and gender-neutral bathrooms. IJC also hopes to expand its Indigenous services and cultural supports to its Touchstone participants with programming offered at the drop-in. If you haven’t visited yet, be sure to check it out!
