The Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation (NLHC) has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to build 10 micro-homes on Army Street in the Buckmaster’s Circle area of St. John’s.
The RFP is seeking companies to construct two buildings, one with six studio-style apartments and the other with four. Two of the 10 units will be fully accessible, while all units will have universal design features, such as lever handles, grab bars and colour contrast.
A micro-home is smaller than a typical apartment, and will be approximately 450 square feet. It is similar in layout to the much publicized “tiny homes,” but in an apartment setting, and will support individuals who are experiencing homelessness or who are unsheltered.
The homes will be built on land owned by the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation in the Buckmaster’s Circle area. The project is funded by a more than $2 million contribution from the Federal Government’s Unsheltered Homelessness and Encampments Initiative, which prioritizes initiatives that directly support people experiencing unsheltered homelessness, tailored to the specific realities of St. John’s.
This RFP is open to alternative forms of construction, such as modular and Insulated Concrete Forms. The review and awarding of the RFP is anticipated this fall.
Quotes
“This federal-provincial housing project is the latest component of the work being done to address the housing and homelessness challenges in our province. We recognize that no single action or investment can overcome these issues, so we aim to break the cycle of homelessness on several fronts. These include the expansion of staffed shelter beds, transitional and supportive housing, and the creation of our own units.”
Honourable Jamie Korab
Minister Responsible for the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation
“This project at Buckmaster’s Circle is putting practical, modern ideas to work, and that’s building small homes with the right community supports. Through the Unsheltered Homelessness and Encampments Initiative, we’re helping to add ten safe and comfortable homes, two of which are fully accessible, so more St. John’s residents have a secure and dignified place to call home.”
Honourable Joanne Thompson
Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, and Member of Parliament for St. John’s East
-30-
The Provincial Government, through Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation (NLHC), is expanding its homeowner support programs to help more families afford necessary maintenance and upgrades to their homes.
A safe and well-maintained home is an important factor in individual and family well-being, allowing families to stay in their homes as they age and ensuring families have a home that meets their needs.
NLHC is increasing the income eligibility thresholds for three programs. This includes:
These programs play a key role in supporting the affordability needs of homeowners, particularly seniors in rural areas, helping them to age in place. The average age of those who availed of these programs last year was between 68 and 71 years old, with seniors accounting for between 72 per cent and 76 per cent of all approved applications.
With these changes, it is estimated that more than 800 additional homeowners will be able to apply under these programs.
Quotes
“Helping people remain in their homes for as long as they wish is one of the key tenets of NLHC. By raising the eligibility threshold of these home improvement and modification programs, we aim to provide support to more people who wish to enjoy the comfort of remaining in their homes.”
Honourable Jamie Korab
Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation
“These changes will have a meaningful impact on seniors throughout Newfoundland and Labrador. A safe, accessible, and well-maintained home is at the heart of aging well in the right place. By raising income eligibility, more seniors can now access the help they need to stay independent, connected, and comfortable in the homes they love for as long as possible.”
Kimberly Leonard
Chief Executive Officer, Seniors NL
Today, members of the Virginia Park Community Centre joined Premier John Hogan, KC, ministers and the mayor of the City of St. John’s to announce plans to construct a new community resource centre in Pleasantville with land and financial commitments from the Provincial Government and the City of St. John’s.
The future community resource centre will replace the current Virginia Park Community Centre on Harding Road which has been temporarily closed since January 2024. As a community resource centre, it will aim to provide a greater variety of services to more people than the existing centre.
The new centre will be located on Janeway Place in St. John’s, next to 32 NLHC homes in the area that are nearing completion. This new location will allow the centre to serve the Virginia Park community as it has since 1987 and expand to serve the growing Pleasantville community and families in the Quidi Vidi and Forest Road areas. The centre will eventually take on a new name that will better reflect this bigger area.
Premier Hogan was on hand to announce the provision of the land for the project, as well as an investment of up to $1 million from the Provincial Government for construction of the new facility. This investment is in addition to the $237,500 in annual operating funding the Provincial Government provides to the centre for the important social, educational, recreational and career development programs and services it provides to the community.
The Virginia Park team are in the process of forming a fundraising committee, which will work to secure additional financing from corporate, community and other levels of government. The target for fundraising is $4.5 million, which includes the commitment from the Provincial Government.
Premier Hogan joined Ron Ellsworth, Board Chair of the Virginia Park Community Centre, for the announcement. They were joined by the Honourable John G. Abbott, Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation, the Honourable Bernard Davis, Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development and MHA for Virginia Waters-Pleasantville, Victoria Mullins, Executive Director of the Virginia Park Community Centre, and His Worship Danny Breen, Mayor of the City of St. John’s.
The City of St. John’s has proudly supported the Virginia Park Community Centre for many years through its Community Grant Program, with $30,000 provided in 2025. The city will also support this project by waiving permit and development fees.
As an “open door” and long-standing safe haven in the neighbourhood, the Virginia Park Community Centre connects people to vital resources – including referrals, social supports, employment services, recreation, education, and wellness programming.
Since January 2024 the community centre has offered services from alternate locations in the community including the Academy Canada building on Harding Road, East Point Elementary and St. Mark’s Anglican Church. These services will continue until construction on the new facility is complete.
Quotes
“Our government knows that a sense of community, and of belonging to a community, is a key driver of health and well-being. This new community centre will expand the reach of the existing Virginia Park Community Centre to serve more families in Pleasantville, Quidi Vidi and Forest Road, and we are pleased to provide land and financial support to help make it a reality.”
Honourable John Hogan, KC
Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador
“This new centre will deepen our impact by expanding the supports and services we can offer to the community. This new larger space will allow us to reach more people, strengthen community connections, and continue being the heart of a larger neighbourhood – a place where everyone is welcomed, supported, and empowered. I thank the Provincial Government for its ongoing support of our vision.”
Ron Ellsworth
Board Chair, Virginia Park Community Centre
“This new community resource centre is the latest in a long line of development projects in Pleasantville. The families that move into these new developments will benefit from the established support structure from the Virginia Park team, and I thank the volunteers for their vision to move forward with a project that not only better serves the families they know, but that will allow their community to grow.”
Honourable John G. Abbott
Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation
“The City of St. John’s is proud to partner in building a new community resource centre that will serve as a foundation for connection, support, and opportunity for families in Virginia Park, Pleasantville, and beyond. This project reflects our ongoing commitment to invest in organizations and spaces that bring people together and strengthen our neighborhoods for generations to come.”
His Worship Danny Breen
Mayor of the City of St. John’s
“As the member representing both Virginia Waters and Pleasantville, I am extremely pleased to see this project move forward. It is hard to explain just how important the hard-working team at the Virginia Park Community Centre is to our community, and I am so pleased that the work they do will soon benefit even more families.”
Honourable Bernard Davis
Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development and MHA for Virginia Waters –Pleasantville
-30-
The Provincial Government is today highlighting progress on the construction of hundreds of affordable rental homes throughout the province as a result of the Affordable Rental Housing Program.
Budget 2025 includes $32 million in 2025-26 for the Affordable Rental Housing Program, part of an overall $82 million, three-year investment that will result in the construction of approximately 800 homes.
Currently, 38 projects have received final approval, which will result in the construction of more than 325 affordable rental homes:
Another 34 projects have conditional approval, with these proponents in the process of providing necessary documentation to receive final approval. These projects represent approximately 450 additional affordable rental homes.
Today, the Honourable John G. Abbott, Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation, visited the site of a project nearly completed in Pouch Cove. The proponent, 85862 NL Corp., received $725,000 from the Affordable Rental Housing Program to construct 10 affordable rental homes, including one fully accessible unit. Under the agreement with the proponent, these homes will be rented at affordable rates set by Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation for 15 years.
The Provincial Government is addressing current housing needs head on, with investments focused in three key areas:
In addition to the Affordable Rental Housing Program, government’s Five Point Plan is providing incentives to advance private and community sector builds, homeowners who wish to add a secondary or basement suite, and first-time homebuyers.
Quote
“As Minister of Housing, it is gratifying to see so many homes going up in our communities thanks to the Affordable Rental Housing Program. Our investments over the last two years are coming to fruition, and 2025 is set to be a big year in housing construction. Our government will continue to work with private and community sector partners to get more people home.”
Honourable John G. Abbott
Minister Responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation, Minister of Seniors
-30-