Victoria - 1176 Yates Street

BC Housing and PHS Community Services Society are pleased to announce the opening of The Juniper, a new building of 46 supportive homes at 1176 Yates Street in Victoria, at the end of November, 2023. The Juniper was designed with the neighbourhood aesthetic in mind and houses 46 self-contained studio homes, each with their own washroom and kitchen. This project is part of an integrated health and housing initiative that will help meet the needs of people in Victoria experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

Housing with Supports

Supportive housing is a self-contained studio home with various supports provided on-site, to help people achieve and maintain housing stability. There will be staff on-site 24 hours a day to provide life skill training, wellness checks and other health and skill development programs.

Many of the people who will move into The Juniper have been living successfully in the temporary shelters and hotels rooms leased in Victoria. A resident selection process was carried out to make sure there is a mix of residents with the right supports. All residents pay rent and sign a program agreement (similar to a tenancy agreement).

Operator: PHS Community Services Society

PHS Community Services Society, an experienced non-profit housing operator, will manage The Juniper. PHS provides housing, healthcare, harm reduction and health promotion for some of the most marginalized people in Victoria and Vancouver. Managing more than 1,500 units across both cities, PHS offers a wide range of supportive housing, made possible by “wraparound” medical and personal supports. Its Victoria operation has grown from running a single supportive housing building in 2016 to currently managing five locations that include housing, shelters, and a supportive recovery program.

BC Housing has a strong historical relationship with PHS and is glad to be partnering with the PHS team again.

Community Engagement

We engaged the community at various points throughout the development.

To ensure that everyone received an opportunity to learn more, ask questions and provide feedback, we hosted two Neighbourhood Dialogue Sessions in June 2021. During these sessions, we shared information about this project, heard from the community about how we can work together to integrate this housing into the community, and how this housing will support people in the community who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness. View the engagement series summary.

Who To Call

To support neighbours and the Victoria community we have added a Who to Call infosheet. This sheet provides a quick list of important contact details and in which situations they could be used.

Community Advisory Committee

BC Housing and PHS are committed to being good neighbours. That’s why we’re establishing a Community Advisory Committee (CAC). This is an opportunity to foster a positive relationship between new supportive housing residents and the neighbourhood to build a strong community together. This committee will meet monthly for one year. Meetings will take place virtually.