The Nova Scotia government has revealed new designs for community-based, small option homes for people with disabilities.
In a release, the Department of Community Services said the two new custom designs for modular homes will be developed more quickly than traditional construction, allowing people with disabilities to move into the community sooner.
Small option homes are community-based units where people with disabilities can live independently, with day-to-day support services from qualified staff.
The province has plans to begin constructing the first five modular homes in the Annapolis Valley, South Shore, Halifax and Cape Breton areas this summer.
There will be room for up to four residents each, and they are expected to move into the accessible, energy-efficient homes early next year.
“As more people move to living in a community, we want construction of new homes to be as efficient as possible,” said Community Services Minister Karla MacFarlane.
“Having these home designs in place supports our government’s commitment to community living and phasing out large institutions.”
The designs were developed by RHAD Architects and DORA Construction Ltd., with both teams receiving input from staff and residents of the province’s Disability Support Program.
Community Services has spent $160,000 on the modular home designs to “speed up the construction process by having homes that will already meet licensing standards, federal building codes and Disability Support Program design requirements.”
It said the homes will be built off-site and then assembled on-site. They are built to the same standards as traditional homes, “but factory construction allows more efficiency, lower costs and less exposure to the elements during the building process.”
There are currently 232 community-based, small option homes in Nova Scotia, the release said.
In an email, department spokesperson Leanne Strathdee-Dowling said there is “no firm number” of homes that will be built in the future.
“The goal, over time, is to close all institutionalized residential settings and move people into community,” she said. “This work is intricate and will take time, given the number of people involved and their individual wants and needs.”
As part of the 2022-23 budget, the province said it is investing an additional $54.2 million in programs for people with disabilities.