A rendering of the Queens Neighbourhood Co-operative Housing development planned for Liverpool. (QNCH)

An affordable housing development for Liverpool could break ground by this fall.

Queens Neighbourhood Co-operative Housing is planning a 26-unit development off Lawrence Street that will include one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units in two separate buildings.

It’s passive design, net zero-ready housing that will welcome tenants from all income groups.

The group was formed as a result of consultations by the Queens Care Society, which identified transportation and housing as vital for Queens County’s older population.

The Region of Queens sold the land to the group for $1 and rezoned the area. It also committed $203,000 toward the project. 

Initially, the group expected to start construction this spring. But now they hope to break ground later this year.

Earl Mielke, with Inclusive Homes Consulting, has been working with the Queens Neighbourhood Co-operative Housing board. He said Monday that there have been some delays in the initial work on design and preparation. 

But he said they’re at the final stages of the design, and are working now with a cost consultant, before they make funding requests to the province and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. CMHC requires groups to use a cost consultant because it wants a good idea of the final project cost.

“We hope to have our funding in place and a contractor hired, realistically late fall. Early fall, late fall, it all depends on how quickly the funders turn the funding over. And the availability of contracts is a big factor.

“Realistically, we really hope to get something started there by the end of this year.”

He said the group expects the whole project to be in the $6-$7-million range, though that could change as the project progresses.

“A lot of it will depend on the funders. But what we’re getting from the feds and the province, they’re really anxious to get some wins for affordable housing. The initial discussions we’ve had are very positive. We’re seen as one of the more shovel-ready on this scale. Things are going well.”

Mielke said rent for the units will be based on a mixed-income approach. Rents will be at or below the median market rate. 

He said that could mean the highest rent would be about $1,200 a month. But he cautioned that that could change depending on final construction costs.  

“A mix of incomes, the rents are all basically the same across the board. It’s just a matter of what types of rent supplement or income testing assistance will be available. And a lot of that is negotiated with the province.

“If you have a single pensioner on old age pension, they can’t afford $1,200 a month. So there will be units that will be designated for people on lesser incomes.”

Mielke says this is just the first of what the group hopes will be more affordable housing developments in other areas of Queens. 

“The intent is do this one, do it really well and then move into another neighbourhood. Initially, it was like 100 units over three years. Now it’s more like 100 units over three to five years. … We’re just looking at ways to … get more affordable housing.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Earl Mielke, a coach with Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens, and his stepdaughter Rebecca Delaney recently returned from the national winter games in Calgary, where Delaney won a gold and a bronze medal. (Rick Conrad photo)

It may have been so cold that the first day had to be rescheduled, but for Liverpool athlete Rebecca Delaney, competing in her first national winter games was an experience she won’t forget.

Delaney, 27, won gold in the 100-metre snowshoe event at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary. She also won bronze in the 4 x 100 snowshoe relay. 

“It was very cold but I still did it,” she said in a recent interview. 

“It was amazing. Let’s just say when I got to the end, I cried.”

Delaney was one of four Queens County athletes competing at the games, which were held Feb. 27 to March 2. Jillian Young was on Delaney’s relay team that snagged the bronze. Young also won silver in the 100-metre event. Michael Moreau won silver in the 4 x 100 men’s relay, and Ben Theriau captured silver as a member of the curling team.

The athletes from Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens were part of Team Nova Scotia’s 45-athlete contingent which won 30 medals overall in Calgary.

Delaney has racked up medals in national summer games and provincial competitions before. But it was her first time kicking up the snow at a national event.

Her time was so good in the 100-metre event that she was bumped up to another division in the 200-metre race, where she competed with the fastest snowshoers in Canada. She finished fifth in that race.

“That was fast. I went like a rock star.”

Team Nova Scotia was supposed to go for a visit to Banff National Park after the events were over. But the weather grounded their bus. So, instead, they took in an AHL game.

While Delaney is proud of how she did on the snowshoe track, she says the game and the closing dance were highlights. She says going to Calgary was about more than winning. 

“I met new friends and I had fun and that’s all that matters.”

Delaney’s mother Susan Inglis is the snowshoe team’s assistant coach and Inglis’s partner Earl Mielke is the head coach.

Betty Ann Daury is the other snowshoe coach, who put the Queens athletes through their paces as much as three days a week leading up the games.

Mielke says they held practices at Queens Place Emera Centre and Privateer Park on the Liverpool waterfront.

“There were days when it was colder in the park than it was at nationals. And the wind coming across down the Mersey River, I wanted to get in the truck, I wanted to go hide. But they kept going and Betty Ann pushed them. And that really got them ready for Games.”

Delaney is already looking forward to her next competition. That will be the provincial games in Wolfville this summer, where she’ll be running in the 100-, 200- and 400-metre races, and competing in the standing long jump and the shot put.

Mielke says they’ll start training in April.

“We have a number of other athletes who won’t go to provincials but enjoy the social part and the athletic part. … And they’re already asking now, when can we start. Probably April we’ll get back out and start training for the (summer) events.”

In the meantime, Delaney is doing her part as an ambassador for Special Olympics to get more people involved.

“We need more athletes. We just need more athletes, so please bring more athletes out to Special Olympics.”

And Mielke says they also need coaches. If you’re interested in joining Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens, you can reach out to them through their Facebook page. 

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Athletes Sarah Mitton, Michael Moreau, Rebecca Delaney, Abigail Smith and Jillian Young were honoured with a homecoming meet and greet at Queens Place Emera Centre on Thursday. Earl Mielke (right) is the head coach of the snowshoe team for Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens. (Rick Conrad)

Queens County celebrated some of its most successful athletes on Thursday as national and international medallists were honoured at Queens Place Emera Centre.

Four athletes from Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens were joined by judo athlete Abigail Smith and recent world indoor shot put champion Sarah Mitton.

More than 100 people showed up to cheer on the athletes at a homecoming meet and greet organized by the Region of Queens.

Jillian Young, Michael Moreau and Rebecca Delaney made up half of Nova Scotia’s medal-winning snowshoe team at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games which wrapped up this past weekend in Calgary. And Ben Theriau of Hunts Point was on the silver-medal-winning curling team.

Young won silver in the 100 metres and bronze in the 4 x 100-metre relay; Moreau captured the silver in the 4 x 100 men’s relay; and Delaney won gold in the 100 metres and bronze in the 4 x 100 relay.

Only six athletes were selected from across the province for the snowshoe team. And three of them are from right here in Queens.

“These are three snowshoe athletes that made it by competing at provincial games to get to national games,” said Earl Mielke, assistant coach with Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens.

“That tells you something about the program and the commitment and the coaching.

“A huge thanks to the Region of Queens and the wonderful community we have being so welcoming and inclusive. It’s really important and this community is behind these athletes. They know it, we know it and it’s wonderful to be a part of it.”

It was a sentiment shared by all the athletes on Thursday. 

Sarah Mitton of Brooklyn won the gold last Friday in the shot put at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, breaking her own Canadian record twice in the final round on the way to the win.

She said having such solid hometown support has motivated her throughout her whole career.

“It means a lot,” she told the crowd. “So much of who I am is where I came from. And this community and where I grew up, I’ve learned so much. … Everybody that has been a part of my journey has shaped me into the human being I am and most of that comes from here.”

Mitton said financial support was also crucial when she was starting out. And she said that she hopes the community continues to be giving and supportive of athletes like the Special Olympians and fellow Brooklyn athlete Abigail Smith.

“There’s so much talent in this community on every level,” she said in an interview afteward. “And I think with Abigail, she’s up and coming and I think she’s going to be the next really big thing for Queens County. I just always want to make sure we’re continuing to support the next generation. Some day I’m going to retire and these athletes will be the ones carrying Queens County on their backs. And with the Special Olympians, their joy for the sport makes me remember that sport is supposed to be fun.”

Brooklyn judo athlete Abigail Smith is only 16, but she’s already made a mark on the national and international stage, placing on the podium at national competitions and at a recent meet in Denmark. She will be travelling to Germany this month representing Team Canada in an international tournament there.

She said that even though she and Mitton grew up near each other, Thursday was the first time they had actually met.

“It’s pretty cool and pretty crazy. Sarah came up to me and said, ‘Do you mind if I sit by you?’ And I was like, ‘Oh yeah, of course.'”

Smith said it was great to see all the support from the community for all the athletes.

“It’s really nice. Of course, I always know that my community’s been behind (me) supporting me, donations, constant messages and posts. But today was very real, it was very nice, everyone is here to help me and Sarah and our Special Olympics athletes. So it was really nice.”

Mike Ferguson of Milton was one of the people who turned out to show their support.

“They’re providing inspiration to other young people to get involved in their community, in athletics or in arts, or whatever it is that makes them happy,” he said.

“It’s about working together and doing something you love doing and having happy fun at it. That’s what I think is the most important message here. Yes, you can win. There are always winners. But it’s all the rest of it. The way they all talked was so wonderful and they showed that wonderful inspiration.”

If you couldn’t make it to the event in person, you can catch a replay of the livestream on the Queens Place Facebook page. 

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Susan Inglis and her daughter, snowshoe athlete Rebecca Delaney, will be part of Team Nova Scotia at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary, starting Feb. 27. (Rick Conrad photo)

By Rick Conrad

Queens County athletes are getting in some last-minute training as they prepare for a big national sporting event in Calgary later this month.

The Special Olympics Canada Winter Games begin Feb. 27 and run until March 2.

And Queens County will be well represented on Team Nova Scotia. 

Liverpool’s Rebecca Delaney, 27, will be one of three local athletes on the six-person snowshoe team. She’ll be racing in the 100-metre and 200-metre events, as well as the 4×100-metre relay.

This will be the 27-year-old’s first national winter games, though she’s competed and won at provincial winter games before. And she’s a veteran of summer games where she has won many medals in track and field.

She’s excited to do well, but racking up more medals isn’t what it’s all about.

“It doesn’t really matter to me,” she says. “I just want to go and have fun.”

Team Nova Scotia will be sending 69 athletes, coaches and mission staff to Calgary. Of those, 45 athletes will compete in eight sports – five-pin bowling, alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, curling, figure skating, floor hockey, speed skating and snowshoeing.

The other team members from Queens County are Michael Moreau and Jillian Young, who are also on the snowshoe team, and Ben Theriau, who is on the curling team.

Delaney’s mother Susan Inglis is the snowshoe team’s assistant coach and Inglis’s partner Earl Mielke is the head coach.

Delaney and her teammates have been training twice a week, either indoors at Queens Place Emera Centre or outdoors when there’s enough snow.

She does some extra cardio and strength training at the Queens Place gym.

She’s going into Calgary as the fastest female on the Nova Scotia team.

“I’m competitive, very competitive. I play fair.”

Inglis says that while the games are a competition, they’re also a social event for athletes, coaches and their families.

“It’s very important. We have one athlete, our Jillian who has never been on a plane, doesn’t spend a whole lot of time outside of Liverpool so this is a really big deal for her. Whenever we go somewhere with the athletes, it’s one big social occasion.

“Everybody’s excited and happy because they don’t always get a lot of opportunities to socialize. They’re scattered in different smaller communities so Special Olympics provides a big social outlet for them. And getting to go away like this all together they’re going to have a great time. So am I.”

Still, Delaney says she won’t have much time for many social activities before she competes, because she needs to focus on her events. And that dedication usually pays off.

“It’s worth it when you bring it home,” she says.

Delaney has been involved in Special Olympics since 2014. When she graduated from high school, she was in a transition program at Verge House in Bridgewater for people with developmental delays.

She met a friend there who told her she should try snowshoeing.

“When she went to Verge House it opened up a whole new world,” Inglis says.

“She ended up going to the (Nova Scotia) winter games that year and came home with three medals and she was hooked and then I was hooked too.”

Inglis and Delaney say it would be great if more people would get involved with Special Olympics locally. 

“I just wish more athletes would come for Special Olympics, we need more athletes,” Delaney says.

“It is a wonderful place to volunteer,” Inglis says. “I obviously got involved because Rebecca was involved but it’s something that just draws people in, the enthusiasm. When you volunteer with Special Olympics you feel like you a member of the royal family or a rock star because everybody is always so excited to see you.”

The games in Calgary are also a chance to qualify for the Special Olympics World Winter Games in March 2025 in Torino, Italy. For now, though, Delaney says she’s focused on doing well in Calgary and having fun.

And she doesn’t plan to retire any time soon.

“Probably a long time till I want to give up. Because it’s fun, I get to socialize with people.”

And you can help too. Buy a Special Olympics donut from Tim Hortons Feb. 2 to 4 and 100 per cent of the proceeds support programs and athletes across Canada.

Delaney, Inglis and the rest of the team plan to leave for Calgary on Feb. 25 to have a day or two before the Games begin. And after the closing ceremonies, all of Team Nova Scotia will visit Lake Louise and Banff before they head home.

If you want to get involved with Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens as a volunteer or as an athlete, contact the group through their Facebook page.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Future site of proposed Co-op housing along Trestle Trail. Photo Ed Halverson

Work has started to bring 26 units of affordable housing to Liverpool.

Queens Neighbourhood Cooperative Housing Ltd, an offshoot of the Queens Care Society has been busy making plans over the past year to realize the dream of building some of the first Co-op housing in Nova Scotia in 30 years.

Earl Mielke with Inclusive Homes Consulting is an independent consultant working with the group to help guide them along the way.

At an expected cost of $6 million Mielke says the development effort will require funding from several sources and the cooperation of different levels of governments and other agencies.

“It will take substantial government funding to make this work. Thankfully for us we also have the Region on board and the Region are being very generous with their contributions as well,” said Mielke. “So, it’s a true partnership, municipal, provincial and federal. That is the only way it can work.”

One of the directors on the cooperative board Lorna MacPherson says Queens MLA Kim Masland and the province have offered tremendous support for their effort and the Region of Queens is all in on trying to get the development off the ground.

In November, Region of Queens Council approved selling four adjoining lots between Lawrence and Amherst streets and Trestle Trail and the Queens Street Extension to the Co-op group for one dollar.

The municipality also just approved $203,000 in the 2023-24 budget for the group to complete predevelopment work on the site. That work will include project management and engineering fees, the cost for architectural drawings and a landscape architect as well as initial site clearing, road access excavation and test pits.

MacPherson says the need for more affordable housing is obvious and everyone involved with the Co-op housing development is driven to make it a reality as soon as possible.

“We’ve been working for probably 10 or 11 months,” said MacPherson. “We had to get incorporated as an organization. People have really rolled up their sleeves, and the success that we’ve had to date is just because we’ve had tremendous cooperation.”

The preliminary design calls for the construction of two buildings.

As a co-op, the units would be owned by members who would be empowered to make decisions about the upkeep or improvements of their units through a democratically elected board of directors.

Traditionally in a private home the owner would build equity which they would receive when they eventually sell the house. In the co-op model, members will not build equity in their unit.

Instead that equity will be used to leverage the construction of more units and to pay off the development over a longer mortgage period, between 40 and 50 years, keeping the units affordable.

As one occupant leaves, the next occupant won’t be faced with a massive increase in housing costs.

MacPherson says the co-op will focus on seniors but aims to be inclusive and diverse.

She expects the group will be breaking ground on the new development in early spring of 2024.

MacPherson says the Co-op group will be bringing the design plans to the South Shore Seniors Expo being held at the Liverpool Best Western from 1:00pm – 3:00pm on Thursday May 25 for anyone wishing to get a sneak peek.

E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com

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