Victorian Minister for Housing and Building, Harriet Shing, has today welcomed families to their new homes at Summerhill Village – a purpose-built social housing community for women aged over 55 in the heart of West Footscray.
The Summerhill Village development includes 49 one- and 10 two-bedroom homes, including two fully accessible apartments, built around a central green courtyard.
Women over 55 are one of the fastest growing groups of homeless people in Victoria, with more than 1,000 women moving into social housing last year. The Labor Government is supporting women and single-parent households with homes designed to enable them to age in place and live independently.
“Developments like Summerhill Village are tailored specifically for the growing number of older Victorians, and we know that ageing in place requires accessible and affordable homes that keep residents connected to their communities,” said Minister Shing.
“This project is a wonderful example of local partnerships providing ongoing benefit to the community – just like our collaboration with United Housing Co-operative, and the Lions Club of Footscray.”
Summerhill Village was delivered in partnership with the Lions Club of Footscray and United Housing Co-operative, and nine of the residents who had lived at the former Footscray Lions Elderly Citizens Village site are returning to brand-new homes.
“UHC’s co-operative housing model included consultation with renters around design, operations and tenancy mix. UHC’s existing tenant members worked with staff to seek applicants, run Information Sessions and conduct interviews to select applicants interested in communal lifestyle in medium density housing,” said United Housing Co-operative CEO, Peter Sibly.
“UHC will have a strong focus on Place Making and building a connected community with a particular focus on tenant voice, food sustainability and community engagement.”
The Government’s $6.3 billion Big Housing Build and Regional Housing Fund are delivering more than 13,300 social and affordable homes across Victoria – with more than 11,100 already complete or underway.
