The Salvation Army and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) have agreed to a three-year project that will offer dedicated repair and renewal dollars to residential facilities across the country. The partnership includes $51 million in funding from The Salvation Army and a $34-million contribution from CMHC, totalling a $85-million investment.

The partnership is intended to cover repair costs and improve energy efficiency, accessibility and the overall functionality and dignity of residential spaces for clients. The portfolio includes a go-forward list of more than 30 buildings across the country, from the Atlantic Division to British Columbia, and as far north as Yellowknife. In total, approximately 3,400 units (or “beds”) are set to receive funding, with the intent to maximize the percentage of units serving women and children.

“Of the 3,000 units, we must achieve an energy efficiency gain of 25 percent, and at least 600 units must, in some way, have improved accessibility,” says Derland Orsted, assistant property secretary. “We’re looking at projects such as roof repairs, new heating and air conditioning systems, ventilation, window replacement, LED lighting upgrades, repair and modernization of elevators, new accessible ramps and automatic doors.”

According to Orsted, some of the Army’s residential facilities struggle with capacity, and this partnership will help address these issues and increase capacity through improved infrastructure. “For example, we can increase capacity with improved infrastructure, creating secure spaces with key fob access, separate elevators and proper safety controls,” says Orsted. “With this project, we can put more systems like this in place so that we can increase our capacity to serve.”

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