At least one advocate in Nanaimo is hoping to steer the City back towards tiny homes, like this facility in Victoria. However the idea has been explored and passed over before. (GVCEH)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

housing

Tiny homes for Nanaimo residents experiencing homelessness revisited by Council

Dec 28, 2022 | 5:15 AM

NANAIMO — It’s an idea which has been explored before, but could make a return depending on Council will.

Nanaimo City Councillors were pitched the idea of a complex of tiny homes, similar to setups in both Duncan and Victoria, as a way to better support people experiencing homelessness.

Joanne Dallman, a retired nurse and new Nanaimo resident made her case at the Monday, Dec. 19 meeting, suggesting projects elsewhere on the Island presented a good blueprint to move forward.

“Housing the homeless involves a complex balancing of many factors, but the ultimate goal is provide a safe and healthy situation for the individual, the tiny community they live in and the wider community which surrounds them.”

She was requesting Council support a tiny home development in principal.

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The tiny home complex in Duncan features a number of small, eight foot square, cabins where people can sleep for the night. They’re equipped with a bed, heater and power outlets.

A similar setup in Victoria features 30 units made from shipping containers.

The idea for Nanaimo garnered some immediate support from coun. Paul Manly.

“We have a considerable homeless population in Nanaimo and it would take about 50 or 60 of these small little tiny towns to accomodate everybody, but I do think there’s the possibility of trying to do this.”

He added these facilities could also target those who don’t meet all the criteria for other supports available such as shelters or supportive housing.

“There are people who are living in cars in our community, people just trying to camp and they’re not necessarily connected with the people you were worried about navigating through on your way to the art store.”

Other councillors were less enthusiastic about the pitch, with the 2018-2022 iteration of Council having already explored the idea.

Coun. Sheryl Armstrong said they took a long look previously.

“The previous council, we did look at this very seriously and the decision was made to go with the modular units because we could house 60 people versus housing five, especially the cost of land values.”

She also cited a minimal amount of City-owned land as another stumbling block for this to move forward, while coun. Erin Hemmens noted BC Housing typically doesn’t support these types of initiatives so funding would need to come from elsewhere.

While no action was taken by council in the form of support, or requesting a report from staff on feasibility, it’s possible the idea could return in the new year.

Jake Rudolph, chief administrative officer, noted a housing workshop is due next month and the topic could be raised again then.

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