Transitional housing project makes strides
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
We need your support!
Local journalism needs your support!
As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed.
Now, more than ever, we need your support.
Starting at $15.99 plus taxes every four weeks you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website.
Subscribe Nowor call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527.
Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community!
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Brandon Sun access to your Free Press subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $20.00 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.00 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/03/2023 (970 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
A project that will provide transitional housing for those seeking to escape homelessness and former offenders who have been released from jail has taken a significant step forward.
Brandon City Council has agreed to sell land to the project’s main proponent, the John Howard Society of Brandon, for $1 provided the society can secure full funding for the initiative.
Council also selected the project as its submission to receive $5 million through the Rapid Housing Initiative, which would provide nearly half the money needed for the $12-million endeavour.
A rendered image of what the transitional housing facility will look like. The project, being built as a partnership between the John Howard Society of Brandon and Youth for Christ Westman, took a big step this week when the city agreed to sell the required land for $1. The city will also submit the project to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation Rapid Housing program to receive $5 million. (File)
“It’s a very important piece in our housing spectrum that currently isn’t there,” Mayor Jeff Fawcett said in an interview Thursday.
Fawcett described the opportunity as “exciting” during Monday’s regular city council meeting. The project is expected to fill a hole left by last year’s closure of YWCA’s Meredith Place when its century-old building couldn’t be renovated.
The land being sold by the city to the society for the new building consists of parcels on the 300 block of 16th Street North. The $5 million was provided to the city by the Canadian Housing and Mortgage Corporation through the Rapid Housing Initiative cities stream, and Brandon will now submit the housing project to CMHC for approval.
Ross Robinson, chief executive officer of The John Howard Society of Brandon, said the city’s support through land and funding will help the organization attract other potential funders.
“The city’s contribution of land for $1 — tremendous,” Robinson said Thursday. “The city’s vote and recognizing that our proposal was the proposal to go forward was so gratifying for the work of all the people on the team.”
That team has been working on creating a 24-suite, three-storey building where residents can live as they work and take programming that will help them prepare to rent their own home.
The design has changed a little since the Sun wrote about the project in December. More units were added to meet the requirements of the Rapid Housing program, Robinson said.
The first floor, which will be 13,000 square feet, will include a large space for a potential tenant, whether that’s a commercial tenant or a service that complements the goals of the building. This floor will also include communal spaces and a kitchen.
The second floor, at 5,008 square feet, will contain 16 units around 200 square feet each. Suites will have their own toilet and sink, and share four shower bathrooms. A number of these units are accessible for those with physical challenges. Residents of these suites would stay for about three months.
On the top floor, at 5,346 square feet, there will be eight apartments of about 500 square feet each with full bathrooms and kitchens. Residents on this floor can stay for up to a year.
The building will play a crucial role as a stepping stone in moving people out of the Samaritan House Ministries Safe and Warm Shelter and eventually into regular rental homes, as well as in providing a safe and secure place where people released from jail and on day parole stand the best chance for reintegration, Robinson explained.
However, he said his organization won’t move forward with the project until all the required funding is secured, and that work is underway.
“There’s been significant conversations with potential capital contributors this week,” Robinson said. “It is looking favourable, but you just never know.”
While Fawcett said there are still a lot of pieces that need to fall into place to make the development a reality, the partnership between the society and Youth for Christ Westman has been a big factor in getting the project this far, as each organization brings different strengths to the table.
For years, YFC has been the largest provider of transitional housing and programs for homeless youth in western Manitoba, YFC executive director Dwayne Dyck has said.
The organization’s experience with project development and management will help the John Howard Society move forward, Dyck said, but in the end it will be the society that will own and run the building.
“We’re doing this because we’re part of the community,” Dyck said, adding the project will also benefit some of YFC’s clients. “We work with homeless youth. Our youth will benefit for sure.”
» ihitchen@brandonsun.com