The small home is fully equipped with a heater, a shower, a composting toilet and lights. It currently sits on Granville Island but Charles Dobson says that it cannot stay there, and that it has been built with Bowen Island in mind. Dobson teaches at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver and worked with a group of industrial design students to design and build a tiny house for the Bowen Community Housing Association (BCHA).
"In the spring of 2013, we designed and built a tiny house that was meant for a homeless person on Bowen Island," Dobson said. "The house is 8' by 18' and has 144 square feet of floor space. People who wandered by the construction site on Granville Island often inquired what the building was for. They were surprised to find it was intended for a homeless person, and without exception, all said they could easily live in such a building themselves." Dobson didn't find this response surprising since most of the world's population lives in family dwellings of less than 200 square feet.
Dobson had hoped that the house would be moved by truck to the island at the end of April but says that the BCHA has not been able to find a place for it. Dobson approached Bowen Island Municipal Council on April 8 to see if there was an interest in taking a role in the project. "I suggested that the house be temporarily placed on a piece ofmunicipal land, and treated as a 'show home'so that Bowen residents could have a look," Dobson said. "The house occupies the footprint of a single parking space,and was designed for an unserviced lot. It has a composting toilet, and propane heating. This would also give the municipality a year or more to sort out its housing policy and find a permanent site." But to date, Dobson has not received a favourable response from the municipality or the BCHA.
Dobson explained that the house was built for providing shelter for one of Bowen's long-term homeless. "Materials were paid for by a small grant from the research department of BC Housing," he said, adding that even though he could probably find another place for the house in the Vancouver area, he feels it is better suited to Bowen. "Cities have lots of shelters, housing associations and programs for the homeless," he said. "The situation is a bit different on Bowen and other islands."
This week, the house has been moved to another temporary spot, where it will still sit empty and Dobson thinks that this is a pity. "This house was built for Bowen - it would make a great home for someone who really needs it," he said.
