'I feel at home': Tenants move into The Working Centre’s new affordable apartments
Tenants have started moving into The Working Centre’s new apartment project in downtown Kitchener.
The Working Centre built 21 new apartments funded mostly between donations and the federal government.
The new units are converted offices located on Queen Street South, next to The Working Centre’s office.
Fifteen of them have already been rented out, following move-in day earlier this week.
“I was so excited – I jumped. I feel at home. I'm so happy. Everything is so nice. I'm already seeing it. I already see my future,” said one of the new tenants.
The goal is to help those in need in the community – especially mothers.
“Constantly we are seeing new Canadian women with children who are in crisis – not being able to find a place to raise their child,” said Joe Mancini, director at The Working Centre.
Mancini said the need in Kitchener is clear.
“We put out a call for tenants at the end of April. Within two weeks we had thirty people apply and we were just touching the surface of the issue. I think we could fill 100 units without even trying,” Mancini admitted.
For one of the tenants, who we have agreed to not name, the space is just what she needs to raise her three young children after a stay in the shelter system.
“I had just my room and washroom, but now it's so good. I love it because everything is just for me… no sharing it,” laughed the mother.
Depending on the applicant’s income, the units cost between $400 and $600 a month.
“To watch a family grow in a space is really beautiful and so, I can see that in people's faces but I also know what it's going to look like in 10 years when the child is grown up and they move on and this has been a real supportive community that they've been part of,” Mancini said.
He added that this is the type of affordable housing that is required to lift communities up.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP wants Liberals to scrap proposed election date change that could secure pensions for many MPs
The federal New Democrats want to amend the Liberal government's electoral reform legislation to scrap the proposal to push back the vote by a week and consequently secure pensions for dozens of MPs, CTV News has learned.
Drive one of these vehicles? You may pay 37 per cent more than average insurance costs due to thefts
As the number of auto theft incidents rises in Canada, so have insurance premiums for drivers, even the ones whose vehicles aren't stolen.
Doug Ford suggests immigrants behind Jewish school shooting
Ontario Premier Doug Ford suggested immigrants are to blame for the shooting of an empty Jewish school in Toronto over the weekend, despite police saying they have little information on the suspects.
Supreme Court won't hear appeal in Montreal brainwashing experiments case
The Supreme Court of Canada will not review a Quebec ruling that bars people from suing the U.S. government in Canada over its role in notorious brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital.
Donald Trump can sue niece over NY Times article, court rules
A New York state appeals court said Donald Trump can sue his niece Mary Trump for giving the New York Times information for its Pulitzer Prize-winning 2018 probe into his finances and his alleged effort to avoid taxes.
Shania Twain shares how she forgave her ex-husband's cheating: 'It's his mistake'
Shania Twain recently addressed the infidelity that rocked her marriage to Robert 'Mutt' Lange, whom she divorced in 2010 after he had an affair with her friend, Marie-Anne Thiébaud.
Teen pleads guilty to manslaughter in death of homeless man in downtown Toronto
One of eight teen girls charged in the death of a homeless man in downtown Toronto has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
Princess of Wales to miss major military display next month amid cancer treatment
Catherine, Princess of Wales, will not be returning to royal duties with an appearance at the Colonel’s Review, a military parade in London in early June, as she continues her treatment for cancer.
Police arrest 19-year-old suspect after Montreal triple homicide
Police have made an arrest following a deadly street fight that ended with three people killed in Montreal's Plateau-Mont-Royal borough last week.