West Vancouver’s first responders, school staff and municipal workers will be bedding down in the community’s first all-affordable housing project in decades far sooner than originally expected.
Stefan Baune, executive director for the Kiwanis North Shore Housing Society, broke the good news about the long-awaited project on Gordon Avenue at 22nd Street to West Vancouver council on Monday night.
“The original timeline was to be ready by approximately March of 2026. As you can see, for everyone who has driven by, we are making tremendous progress. We are ahead of schedule. At this point, we are anticipating to be four to five months earlier than originally anticipated,” Baune said, drawing applause from the council gallery.
The district bought the land at 2195 Gordon Ave. from Vancouver Coastal Health in 2014 for $16.4 million with proceeds the district acquired from the sale of the former West Vancouver Police Department property on Marine Drive.
In 2022 council agreed to lease the northern portion of the site to Kiwanis for $1 per year. The non-profit is building 156 rental homes, which will be priced about 75 per cent of market rates for households making median salaries.
The below-market rentals are reserved for people who have connections to West Van, including those who live there, work there or have kids in school there. Priority access will be for police, firefighters, school staff and municipal workers.
Studio apartments will start at $1,259 while a 1,075-square-foot, three-bedroom suite will go for up to $3,382. More than half of the homes in the project have two or three bedrooms.
“So this is in line with what the district wanted to see – housing for families and workers in the community. The rental rates are are very, very affordable,” Baune said, noting that someone renting a three-bedroom apartment at market rates could expect to pay more than $5,000 per month.
In March, the non-profit will be launching a Village West website where applications can be downloaded.
In order to be eligible, applicants will be screened for maximum household incomes ($106,000 for studios and one-bedrooms, or $161,000 for two- and three-bedrooms).
The hope is to have the applications processed by July.
“So that’s not far out,” Baune said. “These units will be attractive for a lot of people and we want to process them and give people the opportunity as soon as possible.”
Council members were wowed by the project coming in on budget and ahead of schedule, particularly as it has come together through a period of COVID-related delays and inflation.
“You guys have got the magic sauce, for sure,” Coun. Nora Gambioli said.
Mayor Mark Sager expressed gratitude for the fact that local employees would soon be able to live in the community they serve.
“On behalf of all of the municipal employees, our firefighters, police officers and those who work for the school district, our most sincere thanks,” he said. “This kind of housing opportunity will most certainly help younger people, in particular, who want to work here but are limited by the fact they have to travel a long distance.”
The project also includes rooftop solar panels, and a 3,000-square-foot seniors’ respite centre operated by Vancouver Coastal Health.
The southern portion of the property has been leased to developer Darwin Properties for 99 years in exchange for $22.195 million. Initially, Darwin had planned to build 50 strata units in a six-storey building on the site but has since opted to change the project to market rentals.
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