The director of a local poverty reduction group believes an 18-month push to add Tiny Homes as part of the revamped Hamilton, Ont. encampment strategy will truly keep those unhoused “safe, stable and healthy.”
Hamilton councillors will see details of a proposed two-year pilot project Monday which aims to build 25 mini-houses in the West Harbour area close to Liuna Station.
Tom Cooper of Hamilton’s Roundtable for Poverty Reduction says December is the likely timeframe for half of the temporary residences to be made available, should politicians give it the thumbs up.
“We may do it in a phased approach, so maybe start with 10 or 12 and then move up to 25 over a period of months,” Cooper explained.
Housing executives will recommend adaption of the pilot as well as a protocol to open access to public washroom and shower facilities to alleviate the city’s encampment crisis.
In Hamilton, roughly 1,700 people are homeless and about 10 per cent are living outside, according to the city.
The tiny shelters, for those unable to reside in a traditional shelter, mirror a similar development at a hybrid shelter in Kitchener’s city centre that kicked off in late 2021.
Spots in a grassy area of the city centre, jointly owned by the City of Kitchener and the Waterloo Region District School Board, were offered to people living in three large encampments across the region.
The 50 mini dwellings, managed by staff from a job resource centre, are eight by 10 feet and part of a communal hub that has bathrooms, showers and laundry facilities.
Hamilton’s version, to be built by the Hamilton Alliance for Tiny Shelters (HATS), includes structures with a bed, microwave and mini-refrigerator.
Suites can be locked to provide security — something those who are homeless don’t necessarily have when they’re living in encampments or city shelters.
Fencing, 24/7 security and support services with communal washrooms and kitchens are also included in the site layout.
Cooper suggests the attractive part of the idea is the fact that it’s “revenue neutral” with virtually no cost to the city and taxpayers.
Prior to the first pitch to council in early 2022, close to $300,000 was raised through the help of individuals, businesses, and foundations.
HATS would secure another $100,000 from private entity the Fairmount Foundation in July.
Initially, the community was earmarked for a portion of the field at the Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School on York Boulevard, however lack of political support, neighbourhood resistance and a planned demolition of the site forced a move.
HATS would be sent back to the drawing board in early 2023 after council rejected alternate sites at Cathedral Park, the old Dominion Glass site near Gage and Barton as well as Stuart Street near the CN Railyard
The city’s housing division is recommending an area of Strachan Street between James and Hughson Street North near the CN tracks.
Neither the city nor Cooper see this as a long-term solution for those experiencing homelessness, but a transitional project once local politicians hammer out where more permanent housing will be developed.
“So it all depends on the individual. We’re certainly not going to put deadlines on people,” Cooper said.
“But we think this could certainly be a workable solution.”
Comments