RFP goes out for homeless housing

The City of Brandon and the provincial government have announced plans for a housing complex near the Brandon hospital that will serve people experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness.

The multi-unit residential building with up to 48 units is being envisioned for a city-owned lot at 705 Rideau St., the city said in a news release Wednesday.

The project, described as “a significant milestone in the community’s efforts to end homelessness,” will include “integrated supports” to serve transitional and supportive housing needs.

“Our government is proud to be supporting the city of Brandon as we continue this historic surge in affordable housing across Manitoba,” Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith said in the release.

The city put out a request for proposals on July 30, asking organizations to submit bids to develop and operate the facility. The RFP will close on Sept. 10.

The chosen site — a vacant lot covering about 3,508 square metres — was identified as a “key location” for supportive housing due to its nearness to essential services, transit, the hospital and nearby greenspaces, the city said.

The city plans to sell the land for $1 and provide a 20-year, 50 per cent incremental tax offset to support the project. Beyond that, the city does not expect to pay for the facility or its operation.

The Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation intends to provide funding to support the project, the city said. This could take the form of proposal development and capital funding, as well as operating and support service funding under the Housing Starts Here program.

The federal government might also fund the project through the City of Brandon’s Affordable Housing Incentive Program, which is supported by the federal Housing Accelerator Fund, the city said.

Brandon Mayor Jeff Fawcett said the city has been working with the Manitoba government for a long time to facilitate the project.

“I’m really pleased that the province is doing this,” he said. “They’re trying to do a fair bit of housing, and we would like them to do a bit more because we do need people to get into those places.

“We’ve been advocating for this kind of housing a lot.”

The facility is meant to focus on trauma-informed and culturally appropriate supports, the city said.

In order to develop the vacant lot, an adjacent unimproved Rideau Street right-of-way would need to be closed, consolidated and subdivided, the city said.

Jason Gobeil, vice-president on the board of the Brandon Friendship Centre, said the project comes at the right time.

“I think this is a great idea and a great initiative,” Gobeil said. “Housing has been a crunch in our city for a number of years now.”

There are many people in the city who could benefit from it, he said.

“If you were to look right now at any sort of housing lists out there, there’s probably hundreds of people waiting for a different style of housing than where they’re at, or they’re looking to get initially into housing.”

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com