The Coffs Harbour housing project helping veterans and their families in an emergency

A critical shortage of housing for the tens of thousands of veterans living in the Coffs Harbour LGA has led veteran family charity Coffs Coast Legacy to build a dozen new units focused on transitional and emergency housing, particularly for mothers and children.

What happened: The new Coffs Harbour housing project was officially launched last month, with 12 units set to be built on Albany Street made up of one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom residences.

Coffs Coast Legacy president Jeremy Nash said the project was “critical” and will be built on land owned by the charity.

Why it matters: Coffs Coast Legacy has been acquiring property for years with a vision to provide homes for veteran’s families. 

• The charity currently operates about 30 units – majority of those one-bedroom units – across Coffs Harbour and Sawtell, as well as a 49-bed nursing home.

Jeremy Nash, president of Coffs Coast Legacy, told The Mid North Coaster there’s a “critical shortage” of suitable housing in the area.

• There are about 65,000 veterans living in the City of Coffs Harbour, according to the 2021 census.

• “We look after, at the moment, a diminishing number of World War II widows, obviously. We have Vietnam veterans and widows, and we have an increasing number of families that we look after because of post traumatic stress [disorder]  amongst people who've been peacekeepers in more recent operations,” Nash said.

Transitional and emergency housing: Nash said transitioning out of the armed services can often be a “traumatic process”. Transitional housing provides interim support to help veterans reintegrate back into society and provide suitable housing for families.

• While the to-be-built 12 units are open to all ex-services, they will be targeted to mothers with children, which is why three-bedroom units are included in the plans.

“There's very little available for a slightly larger family,” Nash said. “With the shortage of housing that exists in our area, I don't think we would have a problem always filling the available spots with the intended target audience.”

The housing will also prioritise those who find themselves in need of emergency accommodation. 

• “Some people find themselves suddenly homeless, or there's a divorce, or life tragedies happen,” Nash said. “It's nice to be able to have somewhere where we can look after people in those circumstances.”

What’s the cost: Coffs Coast Legacy was successful in getting a $4.1 million grant for the project from the Department of Veteran Affairs (DVA), which will be topped up by a further $1.8million from Legacy.

As for the cost to tenants, Nash says the housing is “in the affordable bracket”. 

• “There would be a rate that is normally either 25 percent or 30 percent of income plus the CRA [Commonwealth Rent Assistance], that would come to [Coffs Coast Legacy] that would enable us to maintain the premises to a suitable standard, to allow us to make it last forever,” Nash said.

• “Legacy has a history of really doing its best to look after families of veterans. Those who are not in financial difficulties pay their way. People who are in financial difficulties, we try to help out.”

How does it work: Veterans and their families who are in need of support can go directly to Coffs Coast Legacy and connect with a community services worker. Other local housing associations often refer people to Legacy.

• “If there are any veterans or veteran’s families in their books, they get priority with us, and similarly, if we are putting people from their books into transitional housing, they would also help us to find more long term housing for them thereafter,” Nash said. 

Ex-services clubs and the likes of the Veterans Wellbeing Network also work closely with Legacy, including referrals for housing.

Plans for the future: The federal government funding requires the project to remain as emergency and transitional housing for at least 15 years. 

• “We have every intention of carrying it on beyond those 15 years,” Nash said. 

What’s the timeline: Now that the City of Coffs Harbour has approved the proposal’s Development Application (DA), Legacy is working toward getting plans drawn up to put the construction out to tender. 

• Nash expects Coffs Coast Legacy will have the tender confirmed by the end of the year, and may well be months into construction by then.

• The units are anticipated to be completed by October 2027.

More support: In the meantime, veterans and their families can visit the newly opened Veterans’ Wellbeing Network Centre on Vernon Street in Coffs Harbour. There they can connect with Legacy community services workers and wellbeing advocates who can link them to relevant service providers, help gather information required to lodge a compensation claim with the DVA, and help find suitable housing.

Thumbnail: The official sod turning on January 29 at the site of the future apartments. Picture supplied.