More public housing is coming to Nova Scotia, as the provincial government announced on Friday that an additional 25 modular housing units will be built across eight communities by the end of March.
In a release, the province stated that the new units will be situated in Glace Bay, Ingonish, Port Hawkesbury, Antigonish, Amherst, Springhill, Westville and Barrington and will provide housing for up to 88 people. The project will use $8.1 million in funding from the province’s wildfire housing support program.
The units are in addition to the 222 public housing units that were announced in September 2023, bringing the total to 247.
“We need more affordable and accessible public housing, and we’re dedicated to finding quicker solutions,” said John Lohr, the province’s housing minister, in a statement.
“By using modular construction and building on provincially owned or serviced land, we’re getting more Nova Scotians into homes faster.”
Halifax MP Andy Filmore, who was present for the announcement on Friday, said the scale of the investment matches the ongoing challenges associated with accessing affordable housing.
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“Everyone deserves a safe, dignified place to call home at a price they can afford,” Filmore said.
One hundred and fifty of the previously announced 222 units will be built in the Halifax Regional Municipality. In the release, it was announced that a new six-storey building will be constructed on Gottingen Street along with the development of two new buildings located on Sackville Manor and Old Beaver Bank Road — one five storeys and the other two.
“Details of the other public housing sites will be released in the coming weeks,” the Nova Scotia Government statement added.
Several factors were said to be considered when determining the housing sites including an area’s need for new units, proximity to services such as grocery stores and public transit, and the capacity to add more units to existing public housing locations.
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