Renovations are expected to start in July to convert the Parent Link Centre into the new Family Resource Network (FRN) hub.

If it is safe to do so, the hub will open in September.

Services for families with children from birth to 18 are being united under one roof. Previously they were split between the Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) office and the Parent Link Centre.

They'll be early childhood service, resource workers, and family support workers all under one roof.

"Essentially, it will be a one-stop shop where parents can access programming, parent education, and more of that intensive individual support to make sure families are OK," explained FCSS manager Kim Krawec.

"We'll be able to support families and make sure they are connected and have what they need throughout their entire child's transition from infant, child, youth, and beyond. I'm really excited about that."

Services for families with children over 18, adults without children, and seniors will all be located at the FCSS office a block away.

On the downside, the introduction of the FRN came with a $270,000 plunge in funding, and the home visitation program was transferred to Children's Cottage Society, of Calgary.

"The loss in funding is definitely hard and putting a lot of stress on our organization, but we're doing our best to make sure we are continuing to meet the needs. That's always our goal to serve those in the community who need us. Our team is highly creative."

The loss of funding for their successful at-risk youth program Safe Coach has left a worrisome gap in assistance for at-risk youth.

The program was created and operated by the Boys and Girls Club of Cochrane and Area for several years before being taken over and expanded by FCSS in 2016.

Since then, they have helped 108 youth who were left homeless.

Krawec says it's a tricky and sensitive topic to discuss.

"We know there's a need in our community. People don't like to talk about homelessness necessarily occurring Cochrane and especially not about youth homelessness or youth being at risk, but it's there. So we need to come up with some solutions to address this."

"That's a huge gap, and we are looking at how do we fill that and looking towards different funding options and ideas."

The services provided by the Parent Link Centre were discontinued on Mar. 31 and replaced by the new model established by the Alberta Government. FCSS was successful in its bid to operate the Cochrane and Area FRN.

Monday night, town council approved using $50,000 from the Parent Link Centre reserve to complete the renovations. The reserve currently has a balance of $$85,691.66.