Kitchen Design Support – Hope House, ON

Hope House is a community support centre located in Guelph, Ontario that provides a variety of programs and services. The purpose of Hope House is, “To nourish and support hope through community.” The centre provides a welcoming space with food and other support, aiming to empower its patrons toward greater independence.

Hope House requested Dillon’s assistance in upgrading its existing servery into an educational kitchen. Specifically, Dillon was asked to complete a structural engineering review of an interior wall that Hope House wished to remove to create a more suitable space for the kitchen. 

Timing was a challenge on this project as Hope House was coordinating a number of moving pieces with the renovations already ongoing. Dillon responded quickly to scope and completed the work within the required timelines. Ultimately, the review did not identify signs that the wall was load-bearing and recommended that Hope House proceed with removing it.

When Dillon last spoke with Hope Hose about the educational kitchen, a number of programs were planned for the space including a take-away breakfast program slated to begin upon completion of the renovations. That program alone is expected to generate 120 or more meals per week. Other planned programs include a cooking class and a meal kit preparation program for new immigrants.

Based on the estimated 10-year timeframe until a major renovation is needed, the kitchen upgrades at Hope House are anticipated to generate over 60,000 meals. While Dillon’s support was only part of the project, our ability to meet the client’s needs under tight timelines helped to make the kitchen upgrades a success.