Kincardine will be without a laundromat for a while after a fire broke out on July 6, and local organizations are brainstorming solutions for those without laundry services.
Councillor Beth Blackwell began the conversations with organizations like the United Way Bruce Grey, Canadian Mental Health Association, the Kincardine Food Bank and Good Food Box, among others, including holding a meeting at the municipal offices last on July 11.
Francesca Dobbyn, United Way Grey Bruce Executive Director, says they're still trying to gather how many people are impacted by the laundromat closure.
"We didn't understand the level of need and we still don't understand the level of need yet," she said. "We've got one data point that there was 40 to 50 people that would walk to the laundromat every week, which gives us an idea. Whether it was the same, or if its 40 to 50 people coming once a month, but it gives us a starting point."
They're hoping residents and visitors that do require laundry services reach out to 211, in order to give organizers a better idea of the challenge ahead.
Dobbyn says the laundromat is rebuilding, a process that could take over a year. While United Way has helped with a situation like this before, that was a short-term fix.
"When the Goderich tornado occurred and power and natural gas were disconnected, laundry became an issue," she said. "So we can go out of the box for a couple weeks and people can do odd things. A year is a whole different planning process. And this is a local business, we don't want to go out as a non-profit and create our own laundromat or anything crazy like that, but it is our job to support our community and those in our community that lack resources."
For short-term solutions, they've developed a map of laundromats and services in the area for people with transportation to go to.
They're also fundraising for in-home solutions for those that walked to the Durham Market Street location.
"It's summer, so people can do their laundry in a kitchen sink or in a bath tub. They need some real estate to dry it on, so that where we started with the dryers. We as the United Way have kicked in the first $1000, so we've bought 20 kits to start with...and as funds become available, we'll purchase more," Dobbyn added.
Those that want to contribute funds to purchase dryers can visit the United Way's website, or donate in person at the Kincardine Food Bank.
And if residents want up-to-date info on laundry services in the area, call 2-1-1.