Whitney Pier, N.S., Pallet shelters opening delayed by weeks

The Pallet village in Whitney Pier, N.S., is pictured. (Source: Ryan MacDonald/CTV News Atlantic)

Cape Breton's first Pallet village in the Whitney Pier, N.S., neighbourhood of Pine Tree Park was supposed to be finished by mid-September, but the space is still not ready for the 35 people who will one day live there.

"(We are) waiting for supplies to arrive, and contractors to finish, so we're looking at probably mid-October for opening,” said Erika Shea, CEO of New Dawn Enterprises, which is fronting the project along with the Ally Centre of Cape Breton.

Shea said when it became clear there would be delays, they decided to take the time to work past them.

"We contemplated, 'Do we rush things along and move folks into a building that's not full complete?’” Shea said. “This is going to be their home for a little while, so we want to make sure we've done everything right and when they move in it feels warm and finished."

Area councillor Lorne Green - who has had reservations about the Pallet homes from the beginning - says some people who live in Pine Tree Park still have concerns.

"It's mostly seniors up there, and they're concerned that, you know, some residents going in there might not be, you know, conducive for the area and they may bother the residents that are there,” Green said.

In an email to CTV Atlantic, a spokesperson for Nova Scotia's Department of Community Services said a delay like this is not unusual for a construction process.

The department added it is working closely with New Dawn and the Ally Centre of Cape Breton to mobilize more resources to get through the last phase as soon as possible.

With the weather getting colder, project proponents say time is of the essence.

"It's not as though the evenings are comfortable now,” Shea said. “There have been two frost warnings in the last two weeks. The weather changes quickly, the winds are picking up. These are not comfortable temperatures to be sleeping outside in."

Many of the people intended for the Pallet village are sleeping at the Ally Centre, a building that was never intended to be a shelter.

The province noted that with another Community Services-funded project - Eleanor's Court in the north end of Sydney - nearly finished, there will be 60 new spaces total for the area’s homeless this winter.

For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page.