Released on September 27, 2017
Two Habitat for Humanity (Habitat) partner families celebrate becoming new homeowners after receiving keys to their homes at a special dedication ceremony held in Prince Albert today.The province, through Saskatchewan Housing Corporation (SHC), contributed $148,000 ($65,000 per home plus $18,000 from the Summit Action Fund (SAF) to help support the projects located at 452 - 19th Street East and 842 16th Street West.
“We commend the work of Habitat for Humanity throughout the province to help families establish roots in communities through the ownership of a safe, quality home to create memories in,” Prince Albert Carlton MLA Joe Hargrave said on behalf of Social Services Minister and Minister responsible for Saskatchewan Housing Corporation Paul Merriman. “This is an important component of our vision to keep Saskatchewan strong and moving forward,”
“It is inspiring to see so many organizations and people coming together to make home ownership a reality for these two families,” Executive Director of Prince Albert Habitat for Humanity John van Leeuwen said. “Providing these homes will help them break the cycle of poverty. With the support we received through Saskatchewan Housing Corporation, Carlton Comprehensive, Saskatchewan Polytechnic and all the private donors and contractors and volunteers who contributed, we were able to build two quality homes that will serve the families for years to come.”
The home at 452 19th Street East is a four-bedroom bungalow approximately 1,000 square feet (93 square metres) with a partially completed basement.
It was built through a partnership between Habitat and Saskatchewan Polytechnic Institute (Polytech) in Prince Albert. This partnership educates carpentry students in applied education while supporting affordable homeownership options in Prince Albert. Habitat supplies the materials and students provide construction labour.
The home located at 842 - 16th Street West is a four-bedroom bungalow approximately 1,000 square feet (93 square metres) with a developed basement.
The home was built in partnership with Carleton Comprehensive High School (CCHS) in Prince Albert. Similar to the Polytech build, the labour is provided by the students through applied education with worksite supervision. Habitat supplies building materials.
Since March 2009, the Government of Saskatchewan has invested $9.85 million in Saskatchewan low to moderate-income families across the province in 13 communities: the Battleford region, Duck Lake, Fort Qu’Appelle, Humboldt, Lloydminster, Melfort, Moose Jaw, Nipawin, Prince Albert, Regina, Saskatoon, Weyburn and Yorkton.
Habitat’s innovative delivery model provides opportunities for families to stabilize their housing, and to achieve their homeownership goals. A key component to Habitat’s model is the “Revolving Build Fund” (Build Fund). Provincial funding, community donations, and private funds are deposited in the Build Fund and used to construct homes. Upon completion, an affordable, no-interest mortgage is provided by Habitat to partner families with mortgage payments going back into the Build Fund for future builds.
Each partner family selected by Habitat contributes 500 partnering hours in building their home, or other Habitat homes.
Habitat is a non-profit organization working toward a world where everyone has a safe place to live. The organization mobilizes volunteers and partners to build homes that provide families of low-income with access to affordable homeownership.
To learn more about Habitat and their work across Saskatchewan, visit www.habitat.ca.
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For more information, contact:
Leya Moore
Social Services
Regina
Phone: 306-787-3610
Email: leya.moore@gov.sk.ca