A series of rezoning applications could add a total of 993 non-market and supportive housing units throughout Burnaby.
City council recently received six proposals for zoning amendments, which councillors instructed staff to continue working to bring finalized applications to the table.
“That is a lot of new homes for residents who have a tough time affording a home in our city,” Mayor Mike Hurley said in a council meeting. “Adding almost 1,000 units of affordable and non-market housing will not solve the issue on its own, but it’s a very important step in the right direction.”
The proposals include two six-storey buildings, totalling 241 units of non-market and supportive housing for the George Derby campus, in a joint proposal with BC Housing.
The site, located at 7550 Cumberland St., is so far home to the George Derby Centre and Derby Manor, the former providing long-term care for seniors and veterans and the latter providing supportive housing for seniors.
Council received a rezoning application that would add 121 one- and two-bedroom units of non-market housing for seniors and disabled veterans. This building would go up on an undeveloped area east of Derby Manor. It would be accessible to vehicles through existing Derby Manor driveway off 16th Avenue.
A separate application is seeking to build a supportive housing facility, described in a city staff report as similar to Derby Manor. The building would house 120 units, and the facility would provide meals, housekeeping and other services related to assisted living.
In another unrelated application, a city-owned site in the 6800-block of Royal Oak Avenue could see 148 “affordable” independent living units in a six-storey development. The proposal had originally reached public hearing last fall, but it was noted that the development, then proposed for two city lots, should include a third lot on the block.
The housing would be run by the Catalyst Community Developments Society, a non-profit that builds mixed-income rental homes for people and families making $20,000 to $100,000 a year.
At ground level, the project would include retail space, which staff said Catalyst would seek primarily non-profits to fill, though Coun. Colleen Jordan noted one of the proposed tenants is a bank.
Planning director Ed Kozak said Catalyst’s model often doesn’t rely on government funding, but rather uses retail rents on the ground level to subsidize non-market housing above.
The proposal is part of a push by council to work with non-profits and BC Housing to develop non-market housing on six city-owned sites.
That is also the case for the remaining three rezoning applications, including one in the 5900-block of Sunset and Kincaid streets and one at 6488 Byrnepark Dr.
The projects would both be run by Vancouver Native Housing Society, M’akola Development Services, TL Housing Solutions and IBI Group.
The Sunset/Kincaid proposal is for two six-storey buildings with a combined 296 affordable independent-living units for Indigenous and non-Indigenous seniors. About 11% of the units would be two-bedroom suites for seniors with dependents living with them, according to a city report.
Meanwhile, the six-storey Byrnepark building would include 200 “affordable” rental units for Indigenous and non-Indigenous families and singles, according to city staff.
Finally, the city is considering a proposal for an area at the corner of Stride Avenue and Bevan Street. This proposal would see two four-storey buildings with up to 108 non-market housing units. No housing operator has yet been chosen for this site, according to city staff.
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Email dgodfrey@burnabynow.com
