Tiny homes for homeless community could be coming to Hamilton

Hamilton is one step closer to having a community of tiny homes to shelter some of the city’s homeless population.

During a board meeting on Tuesday, the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board offered the site of the former Sir John A. Macdonald high school as a temporary location for the tiny home community.

Kitchener has a similar initiative up and running. The project was developed by a group called A Better Tent City.

A local Hamilton group wants to recreate the project in the downtown core.

“The school board has offered us the land for free. It’s limited time because there are plans for that site,” said Julia Kollek, Hamilton Alliance for Tiny Shelters.

The tiny homes will be moved when the school board needs to start work on the future project.

During Tuesday night’s meeting, the board said it would also require there to be on-site security and supports for residents.

The shelters are 8 ft. by 10 ft., heated and have electricity. The homes come furnished with a bed.

Volunteers come daily to feed residents in this community in Kitchener and there are shower and bathroom facilities being built on-site as well as a dining area.

Richard King lives in a tiny home in Kitchener and says it has changed his life.

“I’m actually considering now going to work as a peer counsellor. Working on the streets helping who I can. I gotta pay back what I’ve gotten,” said King.

Cofounder of a Better Tent City, Jeff Willmer, says the tiny homes give residents hope and stability.

He says having a tiny home community helps to centralize supports for those in need.

“There’s food on-site. Volunteers prepare a hot meal. Healthcare is delivered to the site on a mobile health bus and harm reduction supplies come to the site,” said Willmer.

The Hamilton Alliance for Tiny Shelters will be asking the city for $100,000 on Thursday to help fund the project. The rest will come from community donations.

“We know Hamiltonians are incredibly generous and they are quite concerned around the growing crisis around homelessness in our community,” said Tom Cooper, Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction.

The hope is to start out with 10 tiny homes in Hamilton and eventually grow the project to more.

The group says it could be up and ready as soon as March if the city approves.