At a public hearing Thursday evening, City Council approved a new 56-unit supportive housing project at Taylor Manor, a renewed heritage building on Boundary Road. The project will include significant on-site support for people who have a history of mental illness and are homeless or at-risk of being homeless in Vancouver.

“93% of Vancouver’s homeless population faces mental illness, and Taylor Manor is an excellent example of the kind of housing partnerships we need to ensure that our residents can transition into healthier and safer lives,” said Mayor Gregor Robertson. “The on-site support for people with mental illness will provide a hand up to many of Vancouver’s most vulnerable citizens, and will move us closer towards our goal of ending street homelessness by 2015.”

The project is unique in that an anonymous benefactor has agreed to provide ongoing operating funding. The City of Vancouver, the Province, Streetohome Foundation, VanCity, and the Carraresi Foundation are all contributing funds to renovate the 97-year old Taylor Manor. The Kettle Friendship Society will operate the supportive housing facility once the renewal of the two-storey building and addition of a three-storey annex are complete.

Under the proposed plan, 56 residential units will be created along with a number of program areas. The facility will also include kitchen and dining facilities, reading, lounge and TV areas, a courtyard within the complex, a BBQ deck and a community garden. Construction is expected to begin mid-2013, with occupancy beginning by the winter of 2014/2015.

With the approval of Taylor Manor, the City now has 1,807 units of supportive housing underway, and is just 343 units short of its 2014 goal of 2,150 units.

For more information, please visit:
http://former.vancouver.ca/ctyclerk/cclerk/20121113/documents/p3.pdf