Salvation Army opens new transitional housing program in north Edmonton

A sober living and transitional housing complex is now open in the Eastwood neighbourhood.

A new sober-living and transitional housing program officially opened on Thursday in the Alberta Avenue area.

The fully furnished 16-unit Miywanohk location, a repurposed three-storey apartment building near the St. Alphonsus Catholic Parish, is a part of a 23-space “purpose-driven community where residents work with staff to create personalized transition plans focused on stability, skill-building, and independent living,” the Salvation Army said in a media release.

Miywanohk, a Cree word meaning ‘in a good place’, was partly paid for by the federal and provincial governments under the Canada-Alberta Agreement for the Unsheltered Homelessness and Encampments Initiative.

• Download our app to get Edmonton alerts on your device

“The challenge is, once people who invest in their recovery finish that program, there’s not a lot of affordable housing available, so this gives them an alternative,” Salvation Army Major Elaine Bridger told CTV News Edmonton at the opening of the facility. “It’s a small program – it’s only a drop in the bucket, really – but it will provide space for those that need it.”

Bridger said residents can live at Miywanohk for up to 23 months while they’re figuring out where they’ll move next.

“They’re supported by one of our community support workers (who can) link them to any supports they need,” she said.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Galen McDougall