Indigenous and church leaders in Ottawa are looking forward to seeing the new Odayanhaway, or little village, popping up near Carlingwood later this decade.
Odayanhaway will have 66 affordable, culturally appropriate units
Liam Baker · CBC News
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Indigenous and faith leaders in Ottawa are looking forward to seeing the new Odayanhaway, or little village, popping up near Carlingwood later this decade.
The project is located on a plot of land formerly used as a parking lot by the First Unitarian Congregation of Ottawa on its six-acre property on Cleary Avenue.
The development will provide 66 affordable rental units owned and operated by Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services (OAHS).
Its CEO Justin Lewis said the organization will look to provide wraparound support for residents, cultural spaces and a medicine garden.
“That provides elders and knowledge keepers and families with the teachings that wrap them culturally and … foundationally keep them housed,” he said.
Lewis said there is a critical need for supportive and affordable housing across the province, particularly for Indigenous people.
“You’re seeing anywhere from 20 per cent of the homeless population to 80 per cent of the homeless population being urban Indigenous,” Lewis said.
Ottawa's 2024 survey found 19 per cent of those experiencing homelessness identified as Indigenous.
Finding the right partners
Wednesday's groundbreaking ceremony comes roughly three years after the project was first announced.
Congregation leaders said in order to get the project off the ground, they brought in a local affordable housing developer and had to win over the support of the congregation.
“From a faith-based community perspective, you can imagine that very few of us knew much about development,” said Terry Kimmel, chair of the congregation’s campus development committee.
WATCH | More from Wednesday's event: Officials break ground on new affordable housing project for Indigenous Ottawans August 20| Duration 2:08
The church's reverend said the new development can help cultivate more diversity on its campus.
“Honestly, living and being part of a faith community is one of the only places that you be in a multi-generational community,” said Lara Cowtan.
Odayanhaway (which is an Ojibway name, and pronounced oh-DAY-uh-nuh-WAY) is part of a broader project by the congregation to build 229 new rental units. The others would be a 16-storey building slated to be built on the adjacent parcel of land.
Construction on Odayanhaway is expected to officially start this November. The OAHS estimates the project could be complete by April 2029.
LISTEN | Construction set to start soon on Odayanhaway: 12:47Construction is set to start soon on a 66-unit, Indigenous-led affordable housing project
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Liam Baker is a journalist for CBC Ottawa. He also reports and produces stories for CBC Windsor, and on Inuit Nunangat for CBC Nunavut. Previously, he's reported for CBC Yukon, CBC Thunder Bay, and CBC Toronto's Enterprise unit. You can reach him at liam.baker@cbc.ca
With files from CBC Radio's All in a Day
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