A Community Advisory Committee is being created for the proposed supportive housing facility project for Hope.
The committee is being selected by the Hope And Area Transition Society (HATS), and its focus is “to ensure the success of the shelter and the proposed supportive housing facility.” It will include four community members at large.
HATS is the selected operator of the facility, which is currently proposed as being capable of housing 52 people in their own individual suites. The project would be low barrier, meaning residents could be dealing with drug and/or alcohol addictions.
There are four purposes of the Community Advisory Committee listed in a recent call out for committee members. They include providing support to HATS in “their commitment to providing excellent shelter and supported housing.”
The committee would also be monitoring the impact of the project in the community and providing suggestions to improve the program, while reviewing HATS’ response to any complaints.
The committee would also be acting as a liaison between HATS and the neighbourhood.
READ MORE: Supportive housing would prioritize local needs: BC Housing
The proposed project has had a mixed response from the community. Some have voiced concerns that it’s too large, while others fear that BC Housing is planning to bring homeless people from other communities to fill the 52 units.
But it’s also had warm support. The ministers from several Hope churches got together to pen a letter of support for the project
“The Supportive Housing Proposal works from a “Housing First” approach, which has been proven to be a more effective way to help address these issues than only providing housing and support only to those who have already begun to show change,” their letter stated.
There is no solid timeline for the project, and a rezoning application has not been made to the District of Hope yet. However, on Monday night (Feb. 24), a representative from Fraser Health spoke to Hope’s mayor and councillors about the benefits of supportive housing on a community level.
Anyone interested in being on the Community Advisory Committee can contact HATS for an application, at info@hopetransition.org, or 604-869-5111, ext. 231. The deadline to apply is March 20.
READ MORE: Proposal for supportive housing decision now rests with Hope council
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