Construction starts on new housing for women and children fleeing violence in Nanaimo

Kelli Paddon, parliamentary secretary for gender equity, says that the new transitional and second-stage housing being built for women and children fleeing violence in Nanaimo is part of the government's plan to end gender-based violence in the province. Paddon announced the three-year action plan on Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023. Photo courtesy of the province of British Columbia.

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.

Daylene Jones, the executive director of Haven Society, says the new building is badly needed with 159 women and children using the transition house last year.

“On any given night in Canada, 6,000 women and children spend the night in a transition house, because that's the only safe place for them to be,” she said. “So there is a great need across the country due to gender-based violence.”

Kelli Paddon, British Columbia’s parliamentary secretary for gender equity, says that the new housing is an important part of the province’s three-year plan to end gender-based violence that was released earlier this month.

“BC is really addressing gender based violence, it's all hands on deck,” she said “And this is one very significant way that we're supporting survivors through the Building BC Women's Transition Housing funding, but it is only one of the ways that we're doing it.”

Jones says that the housing crisis often plays a role in the decision to leave an unsafe environment.

“The housing crisis is disproportionately impacting women, especially those who have experienced gender based violence and intimate partner violence, and have had to leave because then they don't usually have that financial support in place.”

Haven Society staff will also work at the new building providing wrap-around supports including counseling, childcare and helping residents find permanent housing.

Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog praised the work that Haven Society does in the city.

“It delivers really important services in our community,” he said “To see them expand and be able to provide more services is a wonderful, good news story for the city.”

Paddon has a message for anyone who is experiencing gender based violence.

“I think the underlying message has to be you're not alone. There's a community of people who are there to support you and abuse and violence doesn't need to be accepted and we can live in a world without gender-based violence.”

Construction is expected to be completed by fall 2024.

Funding Note: This story was produced with funding support from the Local Journalism Initiative, administered by the Community Radio Fund of Canada.