The Government of Canada and the Province of B.C. have announced that residents are now moving into the Province’s complex-care beds in the new Foxglove multi-use housing building in Surrey.
Today, Randeep Sarai, Member of Parliament for Surrey Centre, along with David Eby, Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Housing; Sheila Malcolmson, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions; Rachna Singh, Member of Legislative Assembly for Surrey-Green Timbers; Doug McCallum, mayor, City of Surrey; and project partners celebrated the opening of Foxglove, and announced details of a federal investment of $5 million through the National Housing Co-investment Fund (NHCF). The Province, through BC Housing, announced nearly $25 million in provincial funding through the Supportive Housing Fund (SHF), and approximately $3.2 in annual operating funding for the project.
Located at 9810 Foxglove Dr., Foxglove is a six-storey building that will provide 66 supportive homes and 30 permanent shelter spaces for people at risk of or experiencing homelessness, as well as 34 complex-care beds for vulnerable people who need a level of support that goes beyond the current housing model.
Foxglove is one of the first complex-care sites to open as part of the Province’s first-of-its-kind housing program. The complex-care housing will be delivered by Fraser Health in partnership with BC Housing and RainCity Housing and Support Society. Complex care clients will have access to enhanced supports on-site, including nurses, peer workers, social workers, and other health-care professionals, along with access to treatment and other specialized services. Five of the 30 shelter beds will be designated for complex-care support for guests requiring enhanced health services.
RainCity Housing and Support Society will operate the building and provide supportive housing residents and shelter guests with daily meals, life and employment skills training, health and wellness support services, and culturally appropriate supports for Indigenous residents.
Complex-care housing is voluntary. Services follow the client, so if they move, the services will move with them. Depending on the client’s needs, on-site services include:
medication-assisted treatment and recovery coaching;
psychiatric services;
primary-care services;
overdose prevention services;
family and peer supports;
skills training and counselling;
cooking and meal support; and
for Indigenous residents, ceremonial supports and connection to Elders.
The project is a result of a partnership between the Province, through BC Housing, the Government of Canada, through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the Fraser Health Authority, RainCity Housing and Support Society, and the City of Surrey.
Since being announced in January 2022, complex care services are already being provided at two sites in Vancouver and one in Abbotsford. Complex-care is part of government’s broader provincial homelessness strategy, which will be released in later this year.
The Government of Canada funding for this project stems from the first tranche of a $75 million memorandum of understanding with the Government of British Columbia, designed to help build 1,500 units of affordable housing across the province.
Quotes:
““Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. Our government is committed to helping those who need it most, and this project will make a real difference in the lives of people in Surrey. We will continue to do our part to create even more affordable housing that will benefit all Canadians for decades to come. This is the National Housing Strategy at work.””
— The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion
““This project here in Surrey is yet another example of what can be achieved when we work together. Through this collaboration with the province, we are helping to ensure that all people in Surrey and across our province have safe and affordable housing that enables them to thrive.””
— Randeep Sarai, Member of Parliament for Surrey Centre
““The opening of this building is the next step in providing a real solution to an issue that has gone on for far too long in B.C. We’re working to make sure the housing system works better for people with serious mental-health and addiction issues so they aren’t left behind in a cycle of shelters, evictions, emergency rooms and even jail cells. This building, and others like it opening across the province, will help people with complex challenges get the care they need, when and where they need it.””
— David Eby, Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Housing
