Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth installs first tiny shelter
The first of 20 tiny shelters being built by the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth is now in its new home – the parking lot behind St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Dartmouth.
The single occupancy 8X8’ structure has a metal roof and siding, painted gyprock walls and linoleum flooring. There’s a bed with a shelf at the head, under-bed storage, a wall-mounted heater, and a wired-in smoke and carbon monoxide detector.
Monday morning, the structure passed electrical inspection and the utility and power was turned out.
The shelter was constructed by a small manufacturing company, Well Engineered Inc.
Operations manager Neil Wolthers says the company approached the Archdiocese out of a passion for social justice and took on the project.
Reaching the final design took time, because city officials maintained it had to meet certain parts of the building code.
Wolthers says it’s all been a matter of ensuring occupant safety.
“So we don’t want the sides to fall in, or blow away, or catch fire,” he says, “so the discussions that we had with HRM were the applicable sections of the building code.”
“We had all the drawings and the permit application into Halifax late Wednesday, with a revision on Thursday, and they gave us approval on Friday, so things are happening really fast,” says Wolthers.
The shelter was installed Saturday, with cables that run from the structure buried into the ground to withstand Maritime winds.
The project manager for the Archdiocese’s emergency shelters program says seeing the project come to fruition has been emotional.
“It’s wonderful,” says John Stevens, “I almost cried on Friday when I was touring the engineering facility before they put it on the truck.:
“It's been a hard slog, from September to now to work everything out, and it looked like it wasn't going to happen at all, and then we got the green light and here we are.”
Stevens says the first resident – who will be determined in consultation with service providers and social workers - will move in as soon as possible.
The sole occupant will have to abide by an occupancy agreement which bans open fires, smoking in the shelter, and illegal drugs.
The shelter doesn’t have running water, but the church is providing a mobile toilet on the property.
But the occupancy is temporary according to the city permit – lasting until the end of May.
“We hope that over the 6 months of the winter,” says Stevens, “these folks will be connected with their service workers and be able to find the next step for them.”
The outreach coordinator for Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, which encompasses St. Anthony’s Church, says the parish had already been considering building its own shelters when the Archdiocese began its project.
Jennifer Deane says the shelter’s design, “exceeds expectations.”
“There are some elements of comfort there, so that's a real gift,” says Deane.
The shelter was delivered to the site complete with bedding, a pillow, a desk lamp, garbage bin, and blinds for the door – all provided by donation by Well Engineered Inc.
The parish intends to have three shelters on site. Deane says the community will offer supports to the occupants once they learn what is needed most, and the parish runs a food bank at the hall right next to the shelters.
“It's not perfect, it's not the solution, this isn't going to be a forever home for anybody,” says Deane, “but it's a step in the right direction.”
The cost of each shelter is $11, 500 with installation. The Archdiocese is hoping to raise the $230,000 needed through donations and private grants. So far it has raised $50,000.
Meanwhile, the municipality has been working on its own multi-million-dollar emergency housing plan. It has been giving weekly updates on the modular units, which are planned for two sites in the city, meant to shelter 62 people based on single occupancy.
According to the city's last update - the first units are to be completed in Dartmouth December 20th. The units on the Halifax side of the bridges aren’t expected to be finished until the end of January.
Back at the Well Engineered Inc. workshop, workers are busy putting together more of the twenty ordered by the Archdiocese. Four are close to complete.
The goal is to have them all built and installed by Christmas Eve.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.