No longer homeless, some locals are living inside shipping containers in Gatineau

David Desbiens shared a home with his family for a decade. 

He lived with his girlfriend, Phanie Carriere, and his 11-year-old daughter, Analucia. The three-person family shared a four-year-old dog, Koopa — affectionately named after the Mario Bros character. 

But in September 2024 a new owner took possession of Desbiens and Carriere’s rented home. The family had to move out.

“We can’t do nothing about it,” he said. 

With nowhere to go together, the family was forced to separate.

Analucia went to live with her mother; Desbiens says he tries to see her when he can.

Desbiens stayed with Carriere at her father’s place for a month before he had to move out. 

With nowhere to go, he sought out a local shelter, Le Gîte Ami, but he didn’t think it was a place to keep Koopa. So he had no choice but to give his loyal pet away to friends of friends.

And, just like that, Desbiens was alone.

Living in a shelter was far from ideal. The sound of constant screaming and loud noises throughout the night made it difficult for him to live in peace, he says.

Little did Desbiens know that, in just a few weeks, he’d find his peace in a light green shipping container located in a Quebec parking lot.

Life in Village Transitiôn

Since Dec. 23, 2024, people experiencing homelessness have been moving in on a rolling basis to Village Transitiôn in Gatineau. On top of a couple of inches of January snow, there are 45 orange, green and white shipping containers spread out within the gated village. The giant boxes have been repurposed into homes, complete with electricity and running water.

Previously, the lot was occupied by 48 heated tents set up for people experiencing homelessness. 

In the parking lot beside the former Robert-Guertin Centre — once home ice to junior hockey’s Gatineau Olympiques — Gatineau land developer Devcore began constructing the village in October 2024. The homes are managed by non-profit group Transitiôn Québec.

According to Nancy Martineau, the group’s executive director, 31 people had moved in as of Jan. 17. The village is intended to house 100 people experiencing homelessness by the end of May. 

“This is something that I’ve dreamed of,” Martineau said about seeing the village come alive with residents. “I’m very proud of it.”

Martineau said more facilities, like communal kitchens and laundry spaces, would open up in the spring. 

Desbiens moved into his mint green shipping container home at the edge of the lot on Jan. 9.

“I was happy,” Desbiens said, recalling the first time he saw his new living quarters. “Everything was there. I have all the stuff I need.” 

Inside, he has a small kitchen space with a toaster oven, two electric burners, a mini fridge and a sink. Croissants and other foods his girlfriend and her father dropped off are scattered across his counter. A toilet sits to the left, hidden behind a partial wall with an open doorway.

One of the first things he appreciated, he said, was the relative solitude of his new home. 

“I can go in my room, close the door, and be alone,” he said with a smile. “Here, I’m not afraid my things will get stolen.” 

The door to Desbiens’s shipping container home opens with an electronic key fob.

As relics of his previous home, dozens of Desbiens’s stuffed animals — including Scooby-Doo, Pikachu and Bart Simpson — are piled upon his bed. Mounted on the wall to the right of his kitchen is a small TV, which catches a slight glare from the light emitting through the window on the opposite side of the room. 

“When I arrived there was a pillow, a blanket, a TV,” Desbiens recalled. “Brand new.” 

Martineau says every container home will have internet access and heating, but residents can choose between a smaller, 100-foot or larger, 150-foot living space. The latter is equipped with a full bathroom and kitchen. 

Desbiens is currently staying in the smaller option until the larger room he applied for is ready.

“For now, this is better than over there,” Desbiens said, gesturing towards Gîte Ami across the street. 

‘Everybody needs to have a goal’

Rent varies between $200 and $500, based on the resident’s income, Martineau said. 

Desbiens is currently paying $227 per month. 

“I would pay that just for the tranquility,” he said with a laugh. 

During the application process, potential residents were interviewed by Transitiôn Québec workers, according to Martineau. 

“We need to know if you want to work on yourself,” she said. “For some people, it’s getting welfare cheques. For some people, it’s having their identity card. For others, it’s doing their income tax.

“Everybody needs to have a goal and work on it.”  

Desbiens says he “knows his flaws,” including his alcohol and drug consumption, and what he needs to work on. 

Thanks to the security Village Transitiôn offers, Desbiens is ready to start looking for a steady income beyond his regular welfare cheques. 

“I have more motivation in the morning and I can sleep better at night,” he said. “Now that I’m here, I can go look for a job.”  

He adds that he is also thinking of going back to school to obtain his high school diploma. He is only missing French and physics credits. 

Beyond temporary housing

Martineau says the village is intended to provide a transition period to integrate people back into regular housing. Residents can stay between one to five years. 

“Everywhere else you go, you can stay a month, sometimes two or three months, and you have to find a place … but here you can take your time,” she said. “When you don’t know where you’re going to sleep next month, it’s hard to make plans for your life.”

Martineau says she hopes most residents will find a place to stay after five years. However, she said that, if residents still can’t find a permanent home, Village Transitiôn will continue to house them. 

“It’s up to them to tell (us) when they want to leave,” Martineau said. 

Despite everything the village offers, not all experts are convinced tiny home transitional housing is the best strategy for tackling homelessness.

Tim Aubry, a retired University of Ottawa professor who researches homelessness, says studies about the use of tiny home villages to address homelessness are lacking. 

“There’s not really much research into their effectiveness,” Aubry said. “To some extent, it’s an experiment. It will provide shelter and hopefully the sheltered people will be satisfied with it. We’ll see.

“But it’s not regular housing. It’s not moving people into a place that’s going to be permanent.” 

Desbiens, meanwhile, is unsure how long he’ll be staying in the village.

“I want to move out,” he said, “but I’ll make sure I’m not going out and having to come back later.” 

His long-term goal — other than adopting another dog — is to bring his family back together under one roof. 

“We’re looking for a place,” he said. “When we can go somewhere, we’ll go.”