Habitat for Humanity N.W.T. starts work on 4 new units — its biggest build yet in Yellowknife

Work has begun on four new housing units in Yellowknife, built by Habitat for Humanity. 

The non-profit held a ceremony on Thursday to commemorate the start of construction. It will be its largest build to date in the territory.

"We are really, really excited that four new families are going to be homeowners," said Alayna Ward, executive director of Habitat for Humanity N.W.T.

Applications for the homes opened on Thursday as well. The organization is building two duplexes, four units total, in Yellowknife's Niven neighbourhood.

Blasting rock and levelling of the area has already begun. Ward said the hope is for the modular units to arrive in June, and be ready for families to move in by October. She encourages anyone interested in homeownership to look over the eligibility criteria and reach out.

"We work closely with applicants and with our homeowners to make sure that they're successful. We hear from our homeowners about how owning a home has been absolutely life-changing for them," said Ward.

Ward said mortgage payments for successful applicants are kept affordable, at no more than 30 per cent of a family's income. Families who are selected also don't make a down payment and instead commit to 500 hours of volunteer work on their home or within the community.

Ward said that they put an emphasis on applications from families with children, given the specific challenges those families can face when searching for a home. 

Representatives from the city, territorial and federal governments were at Thursday's ceremony. Alex Davidson, president of Habitat for Humanity N.W.T., noted the community collaboration to get the project rolling, including the City of Yellowknife waiving permitting costs.

"We are ahead of time as far as the timeline and we're also on budget. So two really good things about where we're at right now," said Davidson.

The land was donated by Housing N.W.T. along with $400,000 for site development and a separate $200,000 for construction costs of the two duplexes. 

Housing N.W.T. associate deputy minister Michael Saturnino said they're proud to partner on the project.

"The way that we see it is not just about building four new homes — it's about building dreams and strengthening the community," said Saturnino.

Elks Lodge also presented a $50,000 cheque on Thursday to go toward the project. Davidson noted the longstanding collaboration between the organizations and how it was Elks members who first began the partnership about 15 years ago. 

Trevor Thompson, recently elected president of Elks Lodge, presented the cheque.

"We look forward to continuing partnership in the future, and continuing to see builds that come up — and support in any way that we can," said Thompson.