Construction has started on a new 47-bed housing facility for women and children facing gender-based violence in Nanaimo.
The four-storey, wood-frame building will provide 30 self-contained second-stage housing units with their own bathroom and kitchen, as well as 10 rooms with a total of 17 transition beds for short-term stays. Three second-stage housing units and one transition room will be wheelchair accessible.
The housing will be operated by Haven Society, which supports adults and children leaving gender-based violence. This new building will replace Haven Society’s aging 17-unit transition home.
Haven Society staff will also work at the new building providing wrap-around supports including counselling, childcare and helping residents find permanent housing.
CHLY also spoke with Kelli Paddon, British Columbia’s parliamentary secretary for gender equity, and Haven Society Executive Director Daylene Jones who say that the new housing is part of the province’s plan to end gender-based violence.
