HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government has announced four sites that will host single-unit shelters for homeless people, with the first 19 structures likely ready for occupancy next month.

Joy Knight, an official with the Department of Community Services, says the first units are expected to arrive by late January and should be ready for residents within 10 days.

The first so-called “village” will be located near an existing homeless shelter in the Halifax suburb of Lower Sackville, N.S.

The province announced in October that it was spending $7.5 million to buy 200 shelters produced by the American company Pallet, with 100 to be erected in Halifax.

The government had set a target of mid-December for the arrival of the shelters, but Knight says it is taking time to acquire suitable land that meets the requirements for their installation.

Knight says 30 units are to be installed in Sydney, N.S., along with 20 units in Kentville, N.S., while an undetermined number will go up near the Halifax Forum in February or March.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 10, 2024.

The Canadian Press