Construction has begun on 146 new affordable homes for families and seniors in two mid-rise Vancouver apartment buildings.
The B.C. government says Sunrise Village at 2924 Venables Street will consist of two six-storey buildings and will replace a demolished 64-unit low-rise building that had reportedly reached the end of its lifespan.
The province says former tenants of the demolished building will be offered right of first refusal for units in the new Sunrise Village buildings. The development will open 82 net-new affordable rental units on the land.
“Vancouver is a world-class city, and that makes it especially challenging for seniors and families to find housing they can afford close to the amenities they need,” said Ravi Kahlon, B.C. Minister of Housing.
The buildings will be owned and managed by Brightside Community Homes Foundation, a Vancouver-based non-profit housing operator active since 1951.
The CEO of Brightside, William Azaroff, says “Sunrise Village will boast zero-carbon energy efficiency and offer affordable rents in a multi-generational community of families, seniors, and people with disabilities in Hastings-Sunrise.”
The province says 36 of the units — just over a quarter of the total — will be made fully accessible. The buildings will reportedly have indoor and outdoor amenity spaces, as well as a stop for the No. 16 TransLink bus route.
The province says it’s providing approximately $16 million through the Community Housing Fund to the project. The federal government, through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, is providing approximately $11 million. The City of Vancouver is providing approximately $8.3 million, and TransLink and Metro Vancouver are waiving a reported total of $383,000 in fees.
Hedy Fry, the federal MP for Vancouver Centre, tells CityNews that easy collaboration between levels of government has made the project possible.
“We’re announcing more and more of these, because in British Columbia: Metro Van[couver], the City of Vancouver, the provincial government, and the federal government can work together very easily… partnerships with people like Sunrise [Community Association] are making things happen,” said Fry.