Tla’amin seeking bids to build four self-contained suites for Citizens with complex needs
Local Complex Care Housing Project to address homelessness in Tla’amin
At the height of the Covid pandemic the urgent need for more safe and affordable housing to address homelessness and those suffering with complex mental health issues became clear.
In 2021 Tla’amin secured six trailers through the Provincial Reaching Home Fund to fulfill an immediate need for emergency housing but it’s not enough. Tla’amin Nation needs to add more Housing units of all types – from Emergency, Transitional, Supportive, Social Rental, to Private Ownership. The Complex Care Housing program targets one of our needs and is a positive step forward to safe & healthy homes for all who need them.
Tla’amin has successfully accessed a new stream of funding called Complex Care Housing, a provincial program funded by the Government of BC.
Complex Care housing supports individuals with significant mental health, addiction, or concurrent challenges, and other functional needs who are at risk of homelessness. More specifically here in Tla’amin, for the provision of safe and healthy homes and support services for people with overlapping mental-health and substance-use challenges, and traumatic and acquired brain injury.
The Complex Care housing program offers enhanced health, cultural, and social supports tailored to individual needs, including primary care, mental health and addictions care, social and cultural supports, peer programming, and assistance with daily living. Tla’amin Health recently hired Laura Brandsma as the Indigenous Cultural Support Worker specifically funded through Tla’amin’s involvement in the Complex Care Housing Project to work with Tla’amin family members needing these specialized supports.
Executive Councillor and Community Services Housepost Dillon Johnson says “This housing project will offer personalized care to those in our community who need it most. I’m grateful that our community continues to be a national leader in evidence-based programs to help those struggling with substance use and mental health challenges. Through this project and the recent 24-unit Elder’s and Accessible Housing complex we are starting to fill some important housing gaps that our community has been facing for years.”
The qathet region’s Complex Care Housing program was established in 2021 and is a three-way partnership between Vancouver Coastal Health, Tla’amin Nation and Lift Community Services. The current Request for Proposal (RFP) is intending to develop four self-contained units to house Tla’amin citizens who are participating in the qathet CCH program.
The four units are expected to be substantially complete by March 2025 and will be located in the village of Ti’shosum. The location will be close to services so that the tenants are well supported with Health, Housing, and Social Services nearby.
If you’d like to hear more about Tla’amin Housing or the Complex Care Housing program, please contact Housing@tn-bc.ca
Media – Media@tn-bc.ca
Read the Tla’amin Complex Care Housing Request for Proposals