N.W.T. aims to open new transitional housing facility near Yellowknife this fall, but offers few details

The N.W.T. government is hoping to open a new transitional housing facility by the Yellowknife airport on Highway 3 sometime this fall. 

There are still few details about the plans for the facility announced last week, other than that it will have space for 25 people and that the territory has signed a three-year lease for the site which sits next to the Folk on the Rocks parking lot. 

Rob Tordiff, the territory's assistant deputy minister of governance and service integration and one of the leads on the project said some details — including what exactly the space provides and how it operates — will depend on the successful proponent of the request for proposal (RFP).

"Transitional housing by its nature can provide a spectrum of different types of supports," Tordiff said.

"It's really intended to provide a stable environment for folks that are close to or ready to live independently with just a few or maybe one or two minor assistance services."

Tordiff said the site's exact location also has yet to be determined. 

"It's a large lot. Our efforts are to try to minimize the impact in the neighbourhood. We don't want to be interfering with any of the activities that take place there, through Folk on the Rocks or any of the other functions that occur on the adjacent property," he said. 

Tordiff acknowledged that the site's distance from Yellowknife's downtown, about six kilometres away, may not work for all potential clients, but he said some prefer to be away from the city.

Most importantly, he said, the site is what's available and that makes it the best option. 

Last November, the territorial government created a 10-week on-the-land camp on the Ingraham Trail. Tordiff said about 39 people accessed those services, and the department believes 25 will be interested in the new transitional site. 

Tordiff wouldn't say how much it would cost to set up and run the new facility but said the department does have some funding set aside and that the federal government is also contributing. 

He said an RFP for the facility's setup would be going out shortly and another to operate the site would be issued in July.