CALGARY: A new $5.7 million Indigenous Elders’ Lodge in Calgary’s Highland Park community — the first urban Indigenous seniors living facility in Calgary — will provide 12 units of affordable seniors housing.
The lodge will feature cultural spaces for residents to practice land-based teachings, hold ceremonies, and promote healing. This project will create about 34 jobs and is set to welcome residents in February 2023.
MP for Calgary Skyview, George Chahal, on behalf of Federal Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, Ahmed Hussen, and Alberta Seniors and Housing Minister, Josephine Pon, joined the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary to celebrate the groundbreaking for the project Hussen said: “We’re supporting the creation of new homes for the first-ever Urban Indigenous seniors living facility in Calgary. Having a home that supports land-based teachings and promotes healing is an important part of our path on reconciliation. Our National Housing Strategy is helping ensure no one is left behind.””
Chahal said: “Our government is investing in affordable housing here in Calgary and across Canada to help create jobs and improve the quality of life for those who need it most. Senior citizens have brought so many contributions to our society that making sure that they have a safe and affordable home with culturally appropriate support services is one way to give back to them. Thanks to the tireless community-building efforts of the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary, these seniors will soon be able stay close to their family and friends, share important cultural knowledge between generations and live with dignity.”
Pon added: “Supporting Indigenous-led housing projects is a key action under Alberta’s Stronger Foundations affordable housing strategy. The Indigenous Elders’ Lodge is a great example of how collaboration and local expertise can help ensure we meet the diverse housing needs of Albertans, especially those of Indigenous seniors.”
Shane Gauthier, chief executive officer, Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary, said: “This groundbreaking represents a collective commitment by governments and a community organization to make life better for Indigenous seniors.
“This lodge will be a model for culturally-sensitive affordable housing and for how we build relationships to achieve reconciliation.””
Rick Wilson, Minister of Indigenous Relations, said: “Together, we have created a legacy project that could serve as a blueprint for other jurisdictions committed to honouring and caring for Elders as they age. For our community, the Elders’ Lodge is a sacred, safe space for connection and healing.”
Dr. Reg Crowshoe, Elder, said: “Elders have daily, spiritual and healing practices that most seniors’ centres do not accommodate. This lodge will give them space for those rituals and teachings, like making smudge.”
Rose Crowshoe, another Elder added: “When I was looking at the layout of the lodge, I was excited to see open areas for landbased teachings and space for ceremony and cultural activities like beadwork. Through this kind of knowledge sharing, our young people will learn our traditions and carry them on.”
•The Indigenous Elders’ Lodge is owned and operated by the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary.
• The total project budget is estimated at $5.7 million, of which the governments of Alberta and Canada jointly provided a $2.3 million capital grant.
• In Alberta, the funding is provided through the Indigenous Housing Capital Program (IHCP), which supports Indigenous governments and communities to build affordable off-reserve, off-settlement and on-settlement housing. The program ensures a flexible, autonomous approach and encourages public and private developers to partner with Indigenous governments and organizations. IHCP applications are accepted on a continuous basis and are available at alberta.ca/ihcp.
• Supporting community-driven projects like the Indigenous Elders’ Lodge is a key action under Alberta’s Stronger Foundations affordable housing strategy and responds to the recommendations of the 2020 Affordable Housing Review Panel.