Eight Black families moving into new affordable neighbourhood in Westphal

WESTPHAL, N.S. — Michelle Simmons is so excited for the day she can open the door and give her nine-year-old daughter her own room.

“It’s such a wonderful feeling,” Simmons said.

“It’s definitely going to mean stability for me — that’s the number 1 thing — and my daughter has autism so she really needs to have that routine and steadiness.”

Simmons and her daughter have been living with family — in HRM and in Ontario — for a while. The dream of having a place that she can afford will be reality next month.

“We haven’t had our own place to call home — it’s always been staying with family.”

They’ll be one of eight families moving into the new Fairfax Homes neighbourhood in Westphal owned by Akoma Holdings Inc., on the site of the former Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children.

The $3.1-million project was funded by the second round of the federal Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI), and the provincial Department of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Rents for the two-bedroom units range from $650-$1,000, depending on tenants’ income. The Department of Community Services is funding operational costs.

Tenants will be able to access services from a family support worker who will help with income support and employment assistance, as well as substance abuse, medical and dental services.

Sunday Miller, Akoma property consultant, said tenants will be moving in next month.

Like winning the lottery

It’s a unique neighbourhood in many ways, Miller said.

“First, it’s on property owned by Akoma which is — we believe — the largest Black-owned landmass in Canada, with 320 acres,” Miller said. “All tenants are people of African descent and, in most cases, are people who do not have stable housing.”

The idea is to offer healthy housing for families to get on their feet and eventually move into market housing. It’s truly meaningful for them, Miller said. She had the joy of calling the tenants who were chosen from the many that applied to tell them they had a place to live that they could afford.

“For some of them they said this is like winning the lottery,” she said. “They were thrilled and said ‘You don’t know what this is going to do for us.’”

The neighbourhood was unveiled and celebrated in a ceremony Sunday afternoon.

“Everything is just so amazing that it’s brand new, it’s affordable and it’s close to family still, so I’ll have all that support,” Simmons said in an interview Friday.

“There should definitely be more, there are so many people who need them. Myself, as a single parent, there are a lot of other people in similar situations.”

Vision for the future

This affordable housing neighbourhood could be the start. Akoma applied through the cities stream (directed by HRM) of the third round of RHI funding for another affordable housing project, but Halifax Regional Council voted to direct it to another project in Halifax.

Miller said they hope to build more affordable housing, including bigger units for larger families, but they don’t have any specific projects in the works.

In July, the province announced a partnership with HRM to build a long-term care facility on the property. The 96-room facility will be owned and operated by Northwood. It is one of seven long-term care facilities planned for HRM and all are expected to open in 2025.

Fairfax facts:

• Last year, the community voted on the names of the neighbourhood (Fairfax Homes) and its two new roads: Dr. Donald Skeir Way and Paris Lane.
• Reverend Dr. Donald E. Fairfax (1919-2010) taught at Sunday School at the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children and taught at the home’s Bauld School.
• Reverend Dr. Donald Douglas Skeir was the second Black president of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. Sisters Mary and Cherry Paris were matrons of the Nova Scotia Home for Colored Children. 
• The units are two-bedroom, 768-square-foot, energy-efficient units that come with five appliances and a shed.