Victoria - Meares Street

The above image is a rendering subject to change.
The Province, through BC Housing, has purchased 1053 and 1075 Meares Street in Victoria and is building 50 new permanent homes with support services for people who are marginalized and experiencing homelessness.
This development is part of an ongoing commitment, working closely with the City of Victoria, to build housing solutions for those in need and is one of six new projects that will deliver more than 280 permanent supportive homes for people experiencing homelessness across the Capital region.
Supportive Housing to Youth and Young Adults
In partnership with the Ministry of Children and Family Development, this development will provide supportive housing to individuals aged 19-27 who have difficulties accessing affordable housing and will work to prevent homelessness for people transitioning to adulthood.
The 2020 Greater Victoria Point-in-Time Homeless Count and Housing Needs Survey found that 1 in 2 respondents first experienced homelessness as youth (under 25) and 1 in 3 were in government care as a child or youth. A third became homeless within a month of leaving care.
The following core services will be offered to help residents achieve and maintain stability in housing, enhance access to other community-based supports and services, and foster resilience against homelessness;
- 24/7 staffing.
- Meals that meet the standards of Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide.
- No-cost laundry facilities accessible to residents.
- Support for residents to maintain their residencies, including but not limited to directly assisting with room de-cluttering, rent payment and repayment plans.
- Individual or group support services such as life skills training (i.e. cooking, cleaning, shopping, banking), information on local community services, and social and recreational programs.
- Connecting residents to community supports and services such as education and employment opportunities, health and wellness services, and life skills.
- Other supports designed to assist residents in meeting their personal and housing goals, including access to Elders and culturally appropriate programs and services.
- Case planning and resident needs assessment.
- Assistance in accessing income assistance, disability benefits, obtaining a BC identification card, or establishing a bank account as appropriate.
- The operator will strive to accommodate individuals who may otherwise encounter barriers to housing because of certain circumstances or systemic barriers. In particular, the operator will:
- Reasonably accommodate individuals with pets; particularly in situations where individuals are transitioning from shelters or other forms of homelessness to housing.
- Accommodate individuals who may require harm reduction supplies on-site, including needles, sharps containers, condoms, etc.
- Ensure that appropriate overdose prevention measures are in place for residents.
Services are available to residents of the building only. There is not a supervised consumption/injection site at the building.
Operator: Beacon Community Services
Beacon Community Services, a local charity with a long history of operating non-profit housing and delivering social and community services, will manage the supportive housing at 1053 and 1075 Meares Street.
Beacon delivers a vast array of services and programs in the Greater Victoria and Gulf Islands areas, including in the fields of child, youth, and family services; counselling services; subsidized housing, homelessness prevention and shelter services; volunteer services; and employment services, training and supports. Beacon’s extensive service portfolio and strong community connections enables it to provide a wide range of ‘wrap around’ supports to the people it serves.
In partnership with BC Housing, the organization operates three subsidized independent living apartment complexes for seniors and people with disabilities as well as several programs to help prevent homelessness and provide outreach to marginalized people. Since 2009, Beacon has played a leadership role in operating the seasonal Out of the Rain shelter for homeless youth and, in January 2022, Beacon assumed operation of a supportive transitional shelter that provides safe shelter and life skills development and other supports for young adults in downtown Victoria.
More information on Beacon Community Services can be found at https://beaconcs.ca/
Development Process
BC Housing and the local municipalities agree it is necessary to expedite the process to provide permanent supportive homes as soon as possible for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. We are taking this approach because we recognize our most valuable citizens are facing distinct risk through the COVID-19 pandemic and there is an immediate need in the Capital region to provide permanent supportive homes as soon as possible.
This means moving forward as efficiently as possible to create new healthy, safe and stable homes for those in need of housing. Therefore, BC Housing will be moving straight to the construction phase. BC Housing is working closely with the municipalities throughout the development process.
Construction
Contractors from TL Housing Solutions have been on site at 1053 and 1075 Meares Street since July 2021.
What you can expect:
- There will be security on-site 24/7. Traffic flaggers will be on-site during the transportation of materials.
- Security will monitor the site overnight.
- Construction noise will be consistent with the City noise bylaw hours between 7:00am and 7:00pm from Monday to Friday and 10:00am to 7:00pm on Saturday. During the craning period construction noise will occur on Sunday.
- There will be noise from equipment, such as jackhammers.
Unfortunately, severe weather, supply issues and the ongoing pandemic have resulted in delays to the construction schedule. The project is anticipated to complete spring 2023.
Community Engagement
We will be engaging the community at various points throughout the development and setting up a community advisory committee to support future operations.
Community dialogue sessions
To ensure that everyone has an opportunity to learn more, ask questions and provide feedback, BC Housing and partners hosted two Neighbourhood Dialogue Sessions in May 2021. During these sessions we shared information about this project, heard from the community about how we can work together to integrate this into the community, and how this housing will support people in the community who are at risk or currently experiencing homelessness.
Due to COVID-19, meetings took place virtually. For privacy, these sessions were not recorded, however the PowerPoint presentation can be viewed below:
Your feedback and comments are important to us
We welcome questions and comments below in the Q&A tool or by email: complaintresolution@bchousing.org.