[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/frid_street.jpg” caption=”frid street location”]McMaster University is expanding again, with two nursing programs finding a new home in a former bingo hall.

The Frid Street building's open concept design of 20,000 square feet, newly renovated to accommodate 65 workstations, will provide much needed functional office space and is conducive to meeting and teaching activities. The building is close to both the main west-end campus and McMaster's community partners.

MACDoor, a federally-funded program that helps street youth aged 16 to 25 build a life away from the streets, moved into the renovated space in May. The MACDoor program, directed by assistant professor Dyanne Semogas, helps street kids make changes in their lifestyle one day at a time and offers resources such as job-hunting skills. There are five staff members at MACDoor and as many as 20 students accessing the services most days. MACDoor was previously sited at a succession of temporary locations downtown.

During the past few weeks, 22 staff members with the System Linked Research Unit on Health and Social Service Utilization moved in. The provincially funded program was launched in 1991 to test out new and innovative ways of delivering health and social services for vulnerable people. The program is headed up by nursing professor Gina Browne. Its former space in McMaster's Health Sciences Centre will now be redeveloped to create more wet laboratories.

“We feel revitalized with this rebirth in a new location,” said Browne. “We are very pleased to be part of McMaster's further outreach to the community and we feel more closely connected to the agencies that we serve and to their clients. We're especially delighted to share the building with MACDoor and their work with Hamilton's youth.”

John Kelton, dean and vice-president, Faculty of Health Sciences, noted that the building is very appropriate for the kind of health sciences programs that it will accommodate.

“This reflects two important issues for us. Our Faculty of Health Sciences is in a wonderful growth phase and is recruiting more researchers and clinicians to the Hamilton region. This brings many highly skilled jobs for our area, but it does put a squeeze on our accommodations,” he said.

“As well, we see advantages to moving our people into the community to develop hubs of excellence and service. We believe it is our responsibility to bring both science and fiscal wealth to Hamilton.”

A research trials group from the department of medicine will be moving to the Frid Street building early in the new year, and the facility is expected to be fully occupied by the spring of 2004.