Upper Hammonds Plains welcomes new co-operative housing development

CITYnews halifax / By Rachel Morgan

The federal government announced the development of 136 new affordable housing units in Upper Hammonds Plains Saturday.

The project, known as the Upper Hammonds Plains Housing Co-operative, is part of the Co-operative Housing Development Program which the government says is the largest federal investment in new co-op housing development in more than 30 years, with $1.5 billion in funding.

The new co-op will be located at 195 Equestrian Lane and is designed to preserve and enhance African Nova Scotia culture in addition to providing safe and affordable homes.

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“This groundbreaking shows what grassroots, community-led organizing can do: deliver transformational projects and non-market homes that stay affordable for generations, insulated from market turbulence,” Curtis Whiley, founder and president of the Upper Hammonds Plains Community Land Trust, said in a press release. “We incubated the UHPHC so residents participate in the governance, the decisions, and the future of this community asset.”

Halifax Mayor Andy Fillmore said the co-op will also include 29 fully accessible units.

The co-op has received more than $61 million in funding from the federal government.

“The federal government has a strong role to play in building non-market housing to provide more affordable housing options for Canadians, and this includes co-operative housing,” Braedon Clark, Member of Parliament for Sackville—Bedford—Preston, said in a press release. “This project shows how co-ops can provide affordable, inclusive, and sustainable homes that respond directly to local needs.”

The housing co-operative is expected to be completed by spring 2027.