They've started raising money, and are going through the process of getting some land.
The next thing on the to-do list for the Humboldt chapter of Habitat for Humanity is to find some families to live in the homes they plan to build.
Habitat for Humanity is an international, non-governmental, non-profit organization dedicated to building simple, decent, affordable housing for low-income families. Community-level offices operate all across Canada, and the project in Humboldt is affiliated with the Saskatoon branch of Habitat.
Fund-raising is done, and volunteer labour sought to build these homes. Families then purchase them from Habitat for Humanity, and pay off a mortgage to the organization.
The Humboldt chapter is planning to build a duplex on some property they are purchasing from the City of Humboldt on the east side of the city.
However, so far, they don't have any families selected to live in it.
To remedy that, an information meeting for selecting families to purchase a Habitat home is being held January 23 at the Humboldt Collegiate Institute (HCI) library.
"I would hope any family who feels they would qualify would come," said Ivan Buehler, co-chair of the Humboldt chapter.
Families from Humboldt and those in the surrounding area who could benefit from this program are encouraged to attend the meeting.
"This is not just for Humboldt families. The area we're talking about is within 50 kilometres of Humboldt," Buehler said. "It's for any family in the whole area that feels they need this type of thing."
This media have not been invited to this meeting, nor are spectators welcome.
"It's for people who have a need for the Habitat program," Buehler stated.
The family selection committee of the Humboldt chapter has been doing its best to get the word out about this project, and about the upcoming meeting. They've put up posters, and have arranged for the food bank to distribute information to their clients.
They have received calls already of people interested, or who know families that could benefit, noted Elaine Zimmer, head of that committee.
Anyone who knows of a family who could benefit from a home of their own, but who are unable to purchase one through traditional methods, is encouraged to bring them to this meeting.
There is certain criteria that a family has to fit in order to be allowed to purchase a Habitat for Humanity home, Buehler noted.
"They have to be employed, and have been employed for the past two years," Buehler said. "And they have to have passed the probationary period at their current job."
They also have to fit the definition of a low income family according to the Canadian Revenue Agency, he added.
Habitat families cannot be dependent on any form of government social assistance, and they must be able to speak English well enough to fill out their application.
Filling out the application is something they must do on their own, Buehler noted - the local chapter cannot assist them.
This restriction is in place in Humboldt, Buehler explained, because no one on their committee is fluent in another language.
However, if someone else in the community can help these families fill out the forms in English, and can help translate for the interview portion of the process, they can do so.
There is no requirement, Buehler added, that Habitat families have to be Canadian citizens. They can be landed immigrants, or have another designation.
"Priority will be given to families with young children," Buehler said, over people who are single, or those with grown children.
"That priority was put in based on research that says that younger children who grow up in...the stability of a home, then generally speaking, they do better," Buehler explained. That's why Habitat for Humanity International set that priority.
All these requirements, Buehler added, come to the local committee from Habitat for Humanity International.
"We don't set them," he said.
Two women from the Saskatoon Habitat for Humanity organization will be present at the meeting in Humboldt. They will be explaining the process and handing out application forms. They will also be available to answer questions about the forms that the families will have to take home to fill out.
Families will be given three weeks to fill out their application forms.
All the information in the forms will be kept confidential, Zimmer said. The families will seal them, and they will go straight to the Saskatoon Habitat for Humanity office, where they will be processed.
The Saskatoon office will verify all the information, and recommend eligible families to the Humboldt group. The local family selection committee will then interview families, and all the information gathered will be used to make a final selection.
Two primary families and one back-up family will be selected, Zimmer explained - the spare is in case things do not work out with the two first selected.
Having a third family already selected will allow the chance for a family that perhaps comes into the process later to still complete the required 500 hours of volunteer labour that Habitat requires of its home purchasers.
"Sweat equity is important; it shows commitment," said Buehler.
However, he added, it should not be a huge barrier families have to overcome. Should a situation arise where a family comes into the process too late to complete 500 hours of labour on their own home, alternative arrangements will be made, based on each family's circumstances.
The local committee is hoping for a large number of families to attend this meeting.
"If you are unsure (if you fit the criteria), come to the meeting anyway," Buehler advised. "If you don't come to the meeting, you have no chance at all."
The 2012 Humboldt project could be expanded, Buehler noted, which means they may need more than two families who fit the requirements this year.
"If the fundraising goes so well, we have enough money and materials to build two (duplexes), we would do that," Buehler said. "The property we purchased has room for more than one duplex."
Buehler said he hopes the Humboldt chapter will be able to complete other projects in the coming years.
"I would hope we could build two, possibly three in the coming years," he said. That all depends on how this first build turns out, and what the need is.
"If there's enough interest in terms of families, (there is) impetus for Habitat to be able to build more," Buehler said.
"If the need is there, we need to.... see the need, because that gives us incentive to go on."
Should only five families show up to this meeting, and the local Habitat group has property for four houses, "that's not a huge incentive to make it grow," Buehler said.
"We would like to identify the population out there that feels they fit into this and work to help (them). The vision is to be able to provide good housing for all families in the Humboldt area who need it."
Families who come from other centres in the area could instigate a project in their hometowns, Buehler added.
"If they come from Watson, Lanigan... that could make us look at doing a build in those communities, not just here," Buehler said.
