Wood Buffalo Housing is receiving a grant to create 30 affordable furnished units across the region.

The organization announced on Monday they would be receiving funds from the Alberta Real Estate Foundation to help meet the needs of residents during these challenging times.

WBH President and CEO Henry Hunter says the flood really increased the need for these types of units.

“Suddenly we had an entire group of people who are without their homes, their belongings, and their basic furnishings, and they needed to find somewhere that they could stay until they had access again.”

At the time, they only had a handful of furnished properties to offer flood-impacted residents.

Shortly after they reached out to the AREF and were told to apply for one of their grants. They officially received approval at the end of June.

“Funding from this grant means we will have increased capacity to accommodate more people in times of emergency,” added Hunter.

“Even outside of these natural disaster-type scenarios, we often receive requests from people seeking affordable furnished accommodations, whether it’s someone traveling from one of our region’s rural communities for an extended period of time for medical or other reasons, or someone new to the community that needs an affordable and safe place to lay their head at night.”

WBH says these units will also be used as bridge accommodations for people looking for longer-term real estate options.

Work is slated to start in the coming months.

Those in need of affordable housing options can contact Wood Buffalo Housing at 780-799-4050 or [email protected].