Habitat for Humanity is working quickly to get the foundations of two builds ready before winter. The two projects in progress, one on Dunlop St. and the other on Elizabeth Ave., are progressing smoothly, after a slow year for the organization. These will be the second and third builds for the local Habitat group.
Tom Seely says that after a year without a build, it's good to see the two projects progressing and getting ready for their families.
"This is a dream for us when we started five years ago, and it's really nice to see the dream coming to fruition," he adds.
The build on Dunlop will be using a house rescued from the flood waters on Brodie Ave. The home will be renovated and placed on a new foundation. Seely says that getting a house that is largely complete allows the group to move faster and get it up and running quicker than starting from scratch.
"It's a really good house, we rescued it and brought it over to Dunlop and Betts, it will make a really good home for a family."
The third build might have a home to get ready to put in place, but what it needs is a family. Seely says there are a number of requirements to get a family in the home. It needs to be a working family, they need to hit the right income window, they need to be in need of better housing and they need to be able to put in 500 hours of sweat equity. It's a long and involved process to be selected as a family, and Seely encourages people to call 782-8453 if they think they might qualify for a Habitat home.
"There's quite a few steps to the process, but it's a very satisfying thing to own their own home," he notes.
It's expected that the house will be placed on the foundation over winter, but the priority will be the second build on Elizabeth Street, hopefully getting the family moved in early next year.
Two of the volunteers on the build were Saskatchewan Party candidate Greg Ottenbreit and his wife Leone. The incumbent says he decided to help because he was told that they were short handed, and it was an opportunity to help the organization.
Ottenbreit emphasizes that they would be involved whether or not there was an election campaign, and he has supported Habitat for Humanity since its inception.
"It's a good initiative and something I believe in... Tom said they were short handed this morning so it was a good opportunity to get away from the phones in the office and get my hands dirty again," Ottenbreit says. He also says he was proud when his government announced funding for Habitat projects in the province, and above all it's an opportunity to help with the build and help gain awareness for the need for volunteers on the two projects.
