News Release

Veterans’ House Canada Opens 40-Unit Permanent Home for Veterans Experiencing Homelessness in Edmonton

EDMONTON, Alberta, November 9, 2026: Veterans’ House Canada celebrated the grand opening of its Edmonton Home at 13015 128 Avenue NW, welcoming Veterans, donors, community members and government partners to a ribbon-cutting ceremony in the Athlone neighbourhood. The 40 studio residences provides permanent, affordable and supportive housing for Veterans who have experienced homelessness.

Nine Veterans have already moved in, with more move-ins planned. The home officially opens two days before Remembrance Day and before the Edmonton winter settles in.

The building will be named Veterans’ House: The Canso Building, in recognition of the unwavering support of Canso Investment Counsel and the Carswell family, whose predevelopment funding helped launch the project.

“Hard to believe that two years ago, this was an idea and an open field. What a transformation,” said Alan Mulawyshyn, Executive Director, Veterans’ House Canada. “We are proud to offer permanent, supportive and affordable housing to our homeless Veterans: a place they can call home, amongst fellow Veterans, with access to supports, especially those focused on Veterans.”

Why this home is needed

Veteran homelessness is not well known, but a Veteran is more than five times more likely to be homeless than the average Canadian. Contributing factors include the transition out of the Canadian Armed Forces and the circumstances of service itself, such as long absences, frequent moves, sudden deployments and spouse employment challenges.

“This is a reality. I think it is unfortunate that Veterans’ House Canada has to exist, but I am very glad that we do,” said Mulawyshyn. “We need to do our part as they did theirs.”

Unlike transitional housing, Veterans’ House Canada provides permanent housing, and Veterans are not placed on a fixed timeline to leave. The 40 studio residences are supported by communal spaces and wraparound services designed to help Veterans establish stability, rebuild connections and move forward on their own terms.

Collaboration across governments, industry and community

“Projects such as this cannot be done alone. You did it with us,” said Mulawyshyn.

Mayor Andrew Knack, who attended the ceremony, said: “With Remembrance Day just two days away, honouring the bravery and sacrifice of our veterans is top of mind for Canadians. And yet, thousands of veterans across the country still experience homelessness. Edmonton City Council approved the land sale for $1 and contributed $2.5 million through the Affordable Housing Investment Program, alongside $3.4 million in grant funding from the Government of Alberta. Moving forward, I am eager to build on this momentum and replicate this level of partnership across future housing initiatives.”

Key contributions include:

• Canso Investment Counsel and the Carswell family: predevelopment funding that gave the project its early momentum.
• Government of Alberta: $3.4 million through the Affordable Housing Partnership Program, the project’s first major funding.
• City of Edmonton: 1.5 acres of land sold for $1, plus more than $2.5 million through the Affordable Housing Investment Program.
• Government of Canada: $4.5 million through CMHC’s Affordable Housing Fund.
• Community donors: a $6 million fundraising campaign, now in its final stretch, supported by individuals, corporate donors and local industry partners. Dorothy Wiess of Wise Device Inc. travelled from Toronto to attend.

Veterans’ House Canada also thanked its Development Manager, EDCB; architects CSV and Dialog Architects and the full design team; and general contractor OML Construction and its subcontractors. “It is not very often that a developer can say that we are on budget and ahead of schedule,” said Mulawyshyn.

The ceremony opened with prayers from Elder Betty Letendre and featured a flypast by 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron. Attendees included MLA Scott Cyr, Mayor Andrew Knack, Councillor Erin Rutherford, representatives of the Canso team, and neighbours from the Athlone Community League. Directors Sheila McIntyre (President), J’lyn Nye and Ron Fiell, and founding President Neil Raynor, were also recognized.

Building on a proven model

The Edmonton Home builds on a model operating in Ottawa since 2021. Veterans’ House Canada’s first home, the Andy Carswell Building, has housed more than 80 Veterans and has remained full.

“This building will not be our last,” said Mulawyshyn. Veterans’ House Canada is exploring three more homes over the coming years to establish a presence coast to coast.