Key Takeaways:
- Allan Smith and Chanda Woodworth travelled across the country, staying in hotels and sleeping on the streets before settling into a new tiny home community.
- It is partially subsidised by the Fredericton coordinated access system, which is managed by Social Development and other housing agencies and non-profits in the city.
After being evicted from their rent-subsidized apartment, Allan Smith and Chanda Woodworth embarked on a long journey to stay in hotels and eventually sleep on the street before settling into a new tiny home community.
It wasn’t an easy trip there.
In an interview on Saturday, she said, “Our blankets and pillows would get wet.”
“I’d do laundry and return to the tent, but it would rain, and everything would be soaked.” It was just a rough time for us, and I was beginning to doubt Al’s ability to make it. We were both starving because he wasn’t eating.”
Both admitted to having nights when they weren’t sure if they’d wake up the next day.
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Then came the news that they had been assigned a tiny home in Marcel LeBrun’s 12 Neighbours Community. On a 24-hectare property of land on Fredericton’s north side, his non-profit 12 Neigbours Inc. plans to build a community of tiny homes.
There will be 96 tiny houses in the 12 Neighbors Community, 12 on each block. A full kitchen, three-piece bathroom, living space, and loft storage are all included in each 23-square-meter home.
The community will be a full-fledged neighborhood with plenty of green and mixed-use space. It will also have a cafe and a social enterprise center.
The group worked with the Fredericton City Council to approve the lot and building permits. The Fredericton co-ordinated access system, handled by Social Development and other housing agencies and non-profits in the city, subsidizes it in part.
Through the Affordable Rental Housing Program, the Canadian government contributed $1.4 million to the project for a forgivable loan. The first phase also provided rent supplements to each of the new housing units.
Renters do not spend more than 30% of their household income on rent.
It was something Smith and Woodworth had never expected to happen. They applied and were accepted.
“I couldn’t sleep as I was so excited,” Smith, from Ontario, said.
“I was awake at night for days.” I kept assuming to myself, “This can’t be real.” We’ve been here two nights, and I’ve gotten a good night’s sleep both nights,” said Woodworth, a Fredericton native.
They could secure one of the tiny homes, which comes equipped with a full kitchen, a couch that converts to a bed, a full bathroom with a shower, and a table that folds up against the wall.
It’s a place they’ll call home for the rest of their lives.
Smith described it as “extraordinary” because no one can take it back, unlike his previous apartment.
The warm shower, he said, is his favorite part. It’s nice for both of them to have a place to sleep at night that’s not on the ground.
Source: CBC News
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