Kelowna is the latest B.C. community to get housing relief from a provincial tiny homes project, but it may not be the last.
Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon said the Kelowna project could provide a template to help individuals dealing with homelessness in Interior communities beyond its biggest city.
On Thursday (Oct. 12), Kahlon announced BC Housing will create 120 housing units in Kelowna 香蕉视频直播渨ithin a few months香蕉视频直播� for individuals living in encampments or otherwise unhoused. These 6o-square-foot tiny homes spread across a handful of yet-to-be-finalized sites will mark Kelowna as the first Interior community to use tiny homes, but others may soon follow.
香蕉视频直播淪o right now, we have tiny homes in Victoria and in Duncan and certainly, what we are looking to do here is learn from Kelowna,香蕉视频直播� Kahlon said.
Conditions differ in Kelowna from those other locations, he added.
香蕉视频直播淚t香蕉视频直播檚 colder in the winter, a little bit warmer in the summers香蕉视频直播nd it香蕉视频直播檚 going to be very important for us to see how we roll out, but also the approach that is being taken.香蕉视频直播�
Different types of people require different types of housing and some individuals dealing with homelessness may be better suited for more traditional forms of supportive housing, he said.
香蕉视频直播淚f it香蕉视频直播檚 successful, we will look to do it (tiny homes) in more communities.香蕉视频直播�
Kahlon said the 香蕉视频直播渁llure香蕉视频直播� of tiny home is speed while noting the province has been working with Kelowna on this issue for months.
香蕉视频直播淲e can get these units on much quicker than we can traditional housing units,香蕉视频直播� he added. 香蕉视频直播淲e香蕉视频直播檙e just waiting for the city to just finalize where the locations will be. (So) I香蕉视频直播檓 confident that we香蕉视频直播檙e going to be able to get those units moving really quickly once the locations are finalized.
香蕉视频直播櫹憬妒悠抵辈But this is work that has been happening for some time. This is not something that we just started weeks ago. 香蕉视频直播�
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Kahlon made these comments in the presence of Kelowna Mayor Dyas. His community joins Prince George in having signed a memorandum of understanding with the province spelling out respective roles and responsibilities in protecting people sheltering outdoors and moving them indoors, while breaking up encampments.
While it is not clear how much these tiny homes will cost, the Homeless Encampment Action Response Temporary Housing (HEARTH) program will fund them. They will be a temporary solution, so BC Housing can work with Kelowna to identify new permanent supportive housing options.
香蕉视频直播淭here is a critical lack of housing, which is pushing more and more people into homelessness,香蕉视频直播� Kahlon said. 香蕉视频直播淭he situation in encampments here and other cities is extremely concerning,香蕉视频直播� he added, noting encampments are not safe for anyone. 香蕉视频直播淭hey香蕉视频直播檙e not safe for the people in communities, they香蕉视频直播檙e not safe for small businesses nearby, and most of all, they香蕉视频直播檙e not safe for the people who are living in them.香蕉视频直播�
Dyas welcomed the provincial involvement, expressing hope that the public will support the project.
香蕉视频直播淏ut I also know that we hear a lot of concern within our community about the cold weather coming,香蕉视频直播� Dyas said, adding Kelowna is trying to build all forms of housing.
While homelessness is perhaps most visible in Metro Vancouver and Greater Victoria, recent figures also show significant spikes in homelessness in large and small communities across B.C.香蕉视频直播檚 many regions.
Cities have unique needs and the provincial response needs to be flexible, Kahlon added.
He also addressed the question of which other communities in B.C.香蕉视频直播檚 Interior might join Kamloops as communities targeted for additional housing. (The other nine communities announced earlier this year are in Greater Victoria, Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley).
香蕉视频直播淚香蕉视频直播檒l say that we香蕉视频直播檙e not picking communities that need targets by just meeting with them and randomly putting them on lists,香蕉视频直播� he said. 香蕉视频直播淲e香蕉视频直播檙e using data to decide what communities need the housing the most.香蕉视频直播�
The province is expected to announce the next 10 communities targeted for additional housing in the coming months.
wolfgang.depner@blackpress.ca
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