By Daryl Major

Land purchased for supportive housing in Parksville

Mar 29, 2017 | 9:09 AM

PARKSVILLE — A multilevel approach is being used to handle affordable housing in Parksville.

On Monday, March 27, the Regional District of Nanaimo provided a $700,000 grant for the City of Parksville to buy land on Corfield St. for new housing. It followed a $30,000 development grant from the province given to the City to support the project. 

District chair Bill Veenhof said assisting those in need requires collaboration. 

“All (the) agencies or organizations involved, including the Island Crisis Care Society, illustrate that homelessness is a problem for everybody,” he said. 

With the land now secured, the Oceanside Task Force on Homelessness will undergo a public information process to spread awareness about the proposed facility. 

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Parksville mayor Marc Lefebvre said he’s looking forward to community support for the project. 

“We believe acquisition of the Corfield Street property indicates the City of Parksville is committed to working with the region and to finding solutions to address issues related to homelessness and to meet the needs of the diverse groups in our community.”

Veenhof said the project won’t cost district taxpayers a cent, since if nothing is done with the property by the City of Parksville, it will revert back to the Regional District and be sold off. 

daryl.major@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @5minmajor