Parks Canada secures initial interim housing for fire-ravaged Jasper
Acton Clarkin | CBC News | Posted: December 19, 2024 8:17 PM | Last Updated: December 19
Some who lost their homes in July's wildfire could move into new housing in January
Parks Canada has secured the first interim housing options for people in Jasper who lost their homes in July's wildfire that destroyed one-third of structures in the Alberta mountain town.
Close to 360 buildings burned, equalling about 800 homes including apartment and condo units.
Since then, some displaced people have found new accommodation in town, while others have moved out of the area, due to a lack of available housing.
A survey conducted in September by the Municipality of Jasper and the province identified up to 580 housing units are needed.
On Thursday, Parks Canada said it is in the process of purchasing:
- Four interim housing units from a subsidiary of Corrections Canada including a three-bedroom home, a one-bedroom home, one studio apartment-style home, and one canister-style home with three beds inside.
- Two camp facilities that are expected to be installed in the coming months. Those facilities could house more than 200 people.
Parks Canada also says it is exploring feasibility on additional higher density options.
Ifan Thomas, associate superintendent of Jasper National Park, said Parks Canada has procured one of the camp facilities.
"We've secured a camp that will be coming into place early in the new year and we are looking to secure a second camp facility," he said.
"We're aiming for [move-ins] as early in the new year as possible. January for sure.
"The priority here is to get people into interim housing as quickly as possible and to make sure we have as much interim housing in place as we can get. And we're going to be working with the municipality and the province to advance that work."
A total of four hectares of land dotted around the town have been serviced to receive interim housing.
Housing priority is being given to essential workers, but it has not yet been decided exactly who will get into the homes first.
A spokesperson for the municipality said that "an allocation matrix is being developed to guide the interim housing allocation process."
Province also working on interim housing
On Oct. 21, the Alberta government announced $112 million of provincial funding for the construction of 250 modular homes within the Jasper townsite.
Jason Nixon, Alberta minister of seniors and social services, said three builders have been selected to manufacture the first batch of those homes, and they will be delivered to Jasper in early 2025.
Jason Nixon, Alberta minister of seniors and social services, said three builders have been selected to manufacture the first batch of those homes, and they will be delivered to Jasper in early 2025.
"We always anticipated that we would do this in two phases — between 80 and 100 [homes] in the first phase that would take place late January, early February, followed up by the remainder closer towards late March," Nixon said in an interview Thursday.
The homes will be primarily built off-site and then hauled to Jasper and assembled. The units are between one and three bedrooms, with the majority being two bedrooms or more.
Nixon said more space than the four hectares currently provided by Parks Canada will be needed to accommodate the provincially-funded homes. He is calling on Parks Canada to expand the boundaries of the Jasper townsite.
"Without Parks Canada making those adjustments, I do not believe that we will all be able to fit on the same spot. And I think that opens up some real long-term challenges for recovery for Jasper," he said.
The new homes will be available for essential service workers, support service workers and other eligible Jasper residents who lost their homes.
They will be offered at or near market rent, with the Alberta government as the landlord. Once recovery in Jasper is complete, the province will sell the properties on the open market.
Even after the community has recovered from the fire, the properties will still be needed to help address long-standing housing shortages in the mountain community, Nixon said.
The homes will be primarily built off-site and then hauled to Jasper and assembled. The units are between one and three bedrooms, with the majority being two bedrooms or more.
Nixon said more space than the four hectares currently provided by Parks Canada will be needed to accommodate the provincially-funded homes. He is calling on Parks Canada to expand the boundaries of the Jasper townsite.
"Without Parks Canada making those adjustments, I do not believe that we will all be able to fit on the same spot. And I think that opens up some real long-term challenges for recovery for Jasper," he said.
The new homes will be available for essential service workers, support service workers and other eligible Jasper residents who lost their homes.
They will be offered at or near market rent, with the Alberta government as the landlord. Once recovery in Jasper is complete, the province will sell the properties on the open market.
Even after the community has recovered from the fire, the properties will still be needed to help address long-standing housing shortages in the mountain community, Nixon said.