Nova Scotia plans community of ‘tiny homes’ to give unhoused people a place to live

HALIFAX — The government in Nova Scotia is planning an experimental community of so-called tiny homes to house people in Halifax with nowhere to live, according to a news release Wednesday.

The province says the pilot community will have 52 units, including 10 double occupancy homes, to house 62 people. Rent will be no more than 30 per cent of the tenant’s income, and residents will have help finding more permanent housing and employment, if needed, the province said.

“No one should be without a home, and this project is an incredible example of collaboration as we continue to work together to come up with bold and unique solutions to address the housing crisis,” John Lohr, Nova Scotia’s minister of municipal affairs and housing, said in the release.

The community will be a partnership between the province, the Halifax Regional Municipality and the private sector.

Nova Scotia’s building code describes a tiny home as a dwelling whose area is 37 square metres or smaller. An artist’s drawing of the proposed tiny home community depicts rows of small, single-storey modular homes.

The municipality is donating surplus land in Lower Sackville for the project, and it will provide snow clearing and other routine property maintenance, the province said. The units will be built by Prestige Homes, which is part of the Nova Scotia-based Shaw Group of developers and manufacturers.

The provincial government will spend $9.4 million on construction and an additional $935,000 per year for operating costs, the release said.

The province anticipates the first 30 units will be built and ready for occupancy by next spring. It is hoped the entire community will be completed by next fall.

If the pilot project goes well, similar tiny home communities could be built in other parts of Nova Scotia where people are struggling to find a place to live, the province said.

“We have seen this concept work in other jurisdictions, providing a simple home for people who are unhoused,” Halifax Mayor Mike Savage said in the release.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 11, 2023.

The Canadian Press