A hotel in Nova Scotia will be transformed into a new housing project to help those experiencing homelessness through a more than $11 million investment.
The former Travelodge hotel in Dartmouth will be renamed “The Overlook” and converted into 65 permanent supportive housing units.
The province is contributing $3.5 million to make the purchase and will cover $1.5 million in annual operating costs. Meantime, the federal government and Halifax Regional Municipality are contributing $6.5 million through the Rapid Housing Initiative.
The Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia and the North End Community Health Centre will operate The Overlook.
“The North End Community Health Clinic is thrilled to partner on providing permanent supportive housing to people who would otherwise not have access to housing,” Executive Director Marie-France LeBlanc says in a news release. “These units will provide safe and independent living for people in our community through a harm reduction approach so they can live with stability and dignity.”
The Overlook will be the first harm reduction-focused housing project in Nova Scotia, according to the news release. Five units will be designated for respite care for unhoused individuals after they get out of the hospital
Wraparound services for residents will include occupational therapy, onsite nursing and addictions counselling, harm reduction services, and peer support. The site will also feature a library, pharmacy, and community kitchen.
Projects approved under the federal Rapid Housing Initiative must be completed within one year.
Officials say they’ve already started working with some of the people who will be living there.
