
A major supportive housing building in Kamloops will be moving in residents this week.
Executive director of the ASK Wellness Society Bob Hughes says the 62-unit Spero House at 317 Tranquille Road will be open on Friday.
“We’ll be opening up with residents moving in to Sparrow House on the 29th, and moving in until (April) 1st. That one’s finally done, it was supposed to be open and ready in November of 2018,” Hughes says.
“This is agonizing, and heartbreaking to have to wait this long to get this stuff constructed. So we just keep pushing the dial and saying hey, let’s get it open.”
Hughes says this will be the largest building ASK Wellness operates and will be huge for Kamloops.
“It’s one that has taken over a decade, again, to really get something new constructed specifically for folks who have histories of homelessness. And what you see is, people after six months of stabilizing, they get well. They start looking for work, they start reconnecting with family. And that’s why we do what we do.”
In November, a 55-unit temporary housing project opened on Mission Flats Road to bridge the gap due to delays at Sparrow House and at another supportive housing complex under construction, on Victoria Street West.