GROUND has been broken for the construction of a new community housing development in Capalaba set to house 15 of the community’s most vulnerable.
The Jasen Street development, part of Mangrove Housing’s Forgotten Women Project in partnership with the Queensland Government, will consist of 15 one-bedroom apartments to house “at-risk” older women in the Redlands.
Newly elected Premier David Crisafulli and Minister for Housing and Public Works Sam O’Connor were in Capalaba to turn the first sod last week alongside Mangrove Housing CEO Teresa Reed, who said that despite the development being targeted at over 55s, the average age of women who moved in would be 71.
“Our fastest-growing homeless population at the moment is older women,” Ms Reed said.
“It’s been deliberately designed so they can age in place.
“We want a really nice, safe place for these women to be; it’s got a bit of vegetation but not too much that the maintenance becomes too hard; it’s got an elevator so there’s no issue with stairs; indoor and outdoor space; and it’s in beautiful downtown Redlands.”
Ms Reed said the project would fill a need for one-bedroom dwellings in the Redlands area.
“There are a lot of detached two, three, and four-bedroom houses and not a lot of downsizing opportunities,” she said.
“Having one-bedders is really unique in the marketplace because there aren’t a lot here at the moment.
“We’re really hoping to get as many women out of living in their cars as we can.”
The Jasen Street development is due for completion by July 2025, with a similar Mangrove Housing project recently green-lit in Alexandra Hills.
Mr O’Connor said these projects aimed at vulnerable, elderly women and targeted forgotten social housing tenants who often slipped through the cracks.
“We find a lot of those women just don’t have access to super and have ended up in situations where they would be more vulnerable than men of that age, so that’s why this is targeted at that particular group,” he said.
“They deserve a place to call home as they grow older and that’s what this will provide.
“It has a lift, so they can grow older with dignity, it has fantastic accessibility, and these 15 new dwellings will be a really important addition.”
