Kelowna – 759 Crowley Ave - STEP Place

BC Housing and the City of Kelowna have built 60 detached short-stay housing units at 759 Crowley Avenue. This pilot project is a major part of our plan to address and prevent homelessness and encampments in the community. Kelowna is the first in the Interior to use these types of detached short-stay units.

This project is funded by the Province’s HEARTH program. It is also anchored by the Memorandum of Understanding recently signed between the Province and the City of Kelowna. The housing development is called STEP Place, which stands for Supported Transitional [Housing] with Embedded Programming.

STEP Place construction is now complete, and started welcoming residents in late February 2024.

About STEP Place

STEP Place is a temporary housing solution. These units provide urgently needed shelter for local people experiencing homelessness while BC Housing and the City of Kelowna continue working to build permanent supportive homes.

Each temporary sleeping unit is private with a locking door. Each unit has storage shelving, a bed, mini-fridge and heating unit. This site will also include a community room and kitchen, shared washroom facilities, outdoor common space, on-site laundry and staff offices.

BC Housing has selected John Howard Society of Okanagan and Kootenay (JHSOK) to operate this temporary housing and provide services to the residents. These include:

• Daily meals
• Health care referrals, wellness checks
• Life skills training, and low-barrier employment training and opportunitiess
• Connection and referrals to community services, and support groups

The safety of our housing residents, staff and surrounding community is always our top priority. One of the most important safety features for any housing project is 24/7 staffing by experienced professionals. Other safety measures include:

• Fully fenced perimeter with privacy screening
• Gated access
• Security cameras
• Lighting

Residents

People moving into STEP Place will be mainly from local shelters. We will assess all residents and offer temporary housing units to people who are ready to move into independent housing. This, in turn, frees up shelter spaces for people sheltering in encampments and others experiencing homelessness in the community.

Stays at STEP Place are intended to be brief and a gateway to permanent housing. This type of temporary housing can be an important part of a person’s journey out of homelessness – from shelters to transitional housing (such as STEP Place) and finally permanent housing. Staff will work with each resident individually to help them prepare for and find permanent homes that fit their needs.

In addition to the HEARTH housing program, BC Housing and City of Kelowna are launching a Homeless Encampment Action Response Team (HEART). This new program will bring together BC Housing, Interior Health and many other organizations and Indigenous partners. Their shared goal will be to assess the needs of people sheltering in encampments and provide rapid access to the supports and services they need to find a home.

Community Engagement

A caring community can contribute greatly to the success of people transitioning out of homelessness, and we want this temporary housing to be a success for everyone.

BC Housing and JHSOK are committed to being good neighbours. We will keep lines of communication open throughout this project, answer questions, and address any concerns.

Community Conversations

In February 2023, we hosted dialogue sessions with small groups of local neighbours. We thank the community and value the feedback we received. Highlights included:

• Discussions about tenant selection – how we assess who is ready to move into independent housing and match them with appropriate supports
• Discussions about permanent housing – how and when a resident would transition into permanent housing.
• The City of Kelowna’s plan to address homelessness – how we plan to support unsheltered community members by freeing up shelter space and creating clear pathways into housing.
• Consultation with people with lived experience of homelessness – how consultations with people with lived experience of homelessness (including Kelowna’s Lived Experience Circle on Homelessness) have informed the temporary housing program.
• Measuring success of the program – sharing our goal of having 80% of tenants living in stable housing 6 months after leaving STEP Place.
• Community member involvement – thank you to volunteers have offered to help set up the units and prepare welcome packages!

Please continue to visit this page for updates as they become available.

Questions

You are welcome to submit questions or comments at any time by emailing communityrelations@bchousing.org.