When the CEO of YMCA in Forest, London grew frustrated that vulnerable youth couldn’t find an affordable place to live after moving out of the organization’s supported housing program, he found a cheap and safe option for them.
Living in shipping containers.
Timothy Pain came up with the idea as rents continued to soar in his city and the at-risk young people who were graduating from the YMCA’s program would find themselves right back where they started when they tried venturing out into the real world, according to the program’s website.
So Pain, who has experience working in African shanty communities, devised an unusual plan. He got funding to launch mYPad, a program that sets up shipping containers from China that function as studio apartments.
“We wanted to come up with something that would be affordable on one-third of minimum wage,” he told CNN.
Minimum wage is about $200 a week.
Though the living space is small, each is equipped with everything a young person could need. It comes with a shower, toilet, sink, bed, fridge, cooking area, microwave, TV, heating and clothing storage.
Each container costs about $32,000 to set up, according to CNN, but residents will pay only a little over $100 a week.