St. Thomas tiny homes project gets $2.4M boost

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Queen’s Park and Ottawa are teaming up to provide $2.4 million to help build 40 tiny affordable homes in St. Thomas.

Federal and provincial representatives announced the funding for Project Tiny Hope at a news conference Wednesday at 21 Kains St., where the small rental homes will be built.

The project will be managed by YWCA St. Thomas-Elgin and provide a range of support services to residents from diverse backgrounds, including Indigenous people, young adults and persons with disabilities, a Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. release said.

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“These are homes that allow for dignity,” said Peter Fragiskatos, London North Centre Liberal MP and parliamentary secretary to the federal housing minister. “These are homes that allow for people to have a sense of belonging.

“We’ve got to get people housed,” he said. “I truly believe a model like this can work not just for the province, but for the country.”

Rob Flack, Progressive Conservative MPP for Elgin-Middlesex-London MPP, agreed.

“I don’t think it’s just a good example for St Thomas or Elgin County or for our region,” Flack said. “It truly is, as Peter said, an example for Canada.”

YWCA director Lindsay Rice said the 40 tiny rental homes, a mix of one-, two- and three-bedrooms, are expected to be built by 2026 and will house 66 residents. Eight units have been built since construction began in May.

“The space will be designed so that there will be edible landscaping throughout the property and a very naturalized space welcoming the residents from the tiny houses to come out (and) be part of the community, be part of the outdoor environment,” Rice said.

“Supportive services will be available for all residents on the property,” she said.

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While enthused by Project Tiny Hope, politicians acknowledged the need for more housing on a larger scale to tackle Ontario’s housing shortage.

Different types of homes can be used to address the need for more housing, and while “tiny homes may have been written off at one point,” they provide options to get more people housed during a “crisis that is getting more homes built,” Fragiskatos said.

“We need all types of housing builds, from your traditional single detached homes to duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, row houses, mid-rise apartments, tiny homes, too,” Fragiskatos said later.

The funding is coming from the Canada-Ontario Community Housing Initiative, part of a bilateral agreement under the National Housing Strategy.

Ontario’s associate housing minister Vijay Thanigasalam also recognized the need for more housing on a broader scale.

“Our government is using every tool in our toolbox to build more homes and make life more affordable for Ontario families,” he said in the CMHC statement. “Whether it’s in St. Thomas or communities across this province, we’re taking action to accelerate the construction of much-needed housing.”

Queen’s Park is pushing for more housing and aims to build 1.5 million homes in Ontario by 2031 to help ease a provincewide shortage of new and affordable housing.

bwilliams@postmedia.com

@BrianWatLFPress

The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada

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