A new temporary tiny house site will provide homes for 60 residents currently living in Kelowna's homeless shelters.

(GEORGINA WHITEHOUSE / iNFOnews.ca)

Sixty tiny homes for homeless people were unveiled on Crowley Avenue today, nearby Kelowna’s Rail Trail tent city. 

Mayor Tom Dyas, BC’s Minister of Housing Ravi Kahlon, Interior Health CEO Susan Brown and executive director for the John Howard Society of Okanagan and Kootenay Patricia Bacon, unveiled Kelowna’s newest step towards remedying the homeless crisis.

In two weeks, 60 residents currently living in Kelowna’s shelters will be moved to the tiny home community named Step Place. 

Each unit includes two storage shelves, a bed, a dresser, a mini-fridge, a desk, a chair and a heating and cooling unit.

Each unit includes two storage shelves, a bed, a dresser, a mini-fridge, a desk, a chair and a heating and cooling unit.

(GEORGINA WHITEHOUSE / iNFOnews.ca)

The site also includes an indoor common space, where residents can use the bathroom, shower, socialize and cook in the community kitchen.

Kelowna’s shelters are currently operating at close to full capacity. With the opening of the Step Place, the hope is that more shelter spaces will become available for Kelowna’s rail trail residents.

“We believe in British Columbia that encampments are not safe for the individuals living in them and they're not safe for the community at large,” Kalhon said.

"It's important, vitally important, for us to have people come into shelters so we can do an assessment to see what the right fit is. In some cases, people just need some rent supplements because they just fell on hard times. In some cases, they need this type of supportive housing. And in some cases, it's more complex than that.”

Communal shower and bathroom at step place.

(GEORGINA WHITEHOUSE / iNFOnews.ca)

The units are part of the Homeless Encampment Action Response Temporary Housing (HEARTH) program, between the province and the city.

“The idea behind the HEARTH funding, which is provincial funding which allowed for this to actually happen, was that it would work towards fewer numbers within encampments,” Dyas said.

Similar projects already exist in BC in Victoria and Campbell River. Prince George also has tiny homes but suffered a fire that destroyed two of the units.

“The fact that we've got tiny homes open within four months is phenomenal,” Kalhon said. “Normally, it takes us six to nine months to get housing set up in communities once we've identified the location. So the credit goes to the staff at Kelowna, John Howard Society, and of course to BC Housing for making this a reality in such a quick way.”

Residents of Step Place will receive a daily meal, as well as access to skills training and housing support. The site will also be staffed 24/7 by at least two employees to ensure the residents are safe.

The site will be managed by the John Howard Society, a non-profit organization. 

Patricia Bacon shows the common room and kitchen area at Step Place.

(GEORGINA WHITEHOUSE / iNFOnews.ca)

“Step Place is going to be more than a tiny home,” Bacon said. “It's a program founded upon John Howard's core belief that all people should be given an opportunity to grow, develop skills, experience inclusion and community, and to have a remarkable life.”

Bacon said the goal is for stays to be as brief as possible, so that residents can be swiftly moved into more permanent housing.

Shelter residents will be selected for the tiny home site by the province and the city’s non-profit partners. However, those will disabilities or accessibility issues will not be able to live at Step Place.

“I think what the John Howard Society and Kelowna and BC Housing have done here is not only created housing opportunities for people, but also created spaces for people to connect with each other,” Kalhon said. "Because we know it's not just housing. It's that social connection. It's that community that gets built in this type of environment that is going to ensure people are successful.”

The second 60-unit tiny home site, Trailside Transitional Housing, is expected to be completed in April 2024.

A view from above Kelowna's new tiny home community.

(GEORGINA WHITEHOUSE / iNFOnews.ca)

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