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CITY OF VANCOUVER ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT |
Date: |
January 6, 2005 | |
Author: |
Cameron Gray | |
Phone No.: |
7207 | |
RTS No.: |
04231 | |
CC File No.: |
8104/4656 | |
Meeting Date: |
January 18, 2005 |
TO: |
Vancouver City Council |
FROM: |
Director of the Housing Centre in consultation with the Woodwards' Steering Committee |
SUBJECT: |
Selection of Sponsors for Woodwards' Non-Market Housing |
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council appoint Affordable Housing Society as sponsor for the development of 75 units of housing for low and modest income families in the proposed redevelopment of Woodwards; and
B. THAT Council appoint PHS Community Services Society (the Portland Hotel Society) as sponsor for the development of 125 units of housing for low-income singles in the proposed redevelopment of Woodwards;
C. THAT no legal rights or obligations shall arise or be created until the execution of all legal documentation on terms and conditions to the satisfaction of the City's Director of Legal Services.
CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The City Manager RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council's social housing objectives are to: Maintain and expand housing opportunities in Vancouver for low and modest income households with priority being given to families with children; seniors on fixed incomes or in need of support; SRO residents; and the mentally ill, physically disabled, and others at risk of homelessness.
PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
This report recommends that the 200 units of non-market housing allocated to the Woodwards redevelopment be divided between the two sponsors that submitted proposals to the 2004 Request for Proposals for the development of the non-market housing in Woodwards. It is recommended that Affordable Housing Society be appointed as sponsor for the 75 units of housing for low and modest income families and PHS Community Services Society (the Portland Hotel Society) be appointed as sponsor of the 125 units of housing for low income singles to be included in the redevelopment of Woodwards.
BACKGROUND
In March 2003 the City purchased the Woodwards building (101 West Hastings St.) with the intention of redeveloping it to create an inclusive community that would be part of the revitalization of the area. As part of the purchase agreement with the Province, BC Housing allocated 100 units of non-profit housing to Woodwards: 40 units for families and 60 for singles, with 80 of the 100 units to be targeted to core-need households of which 60 would be targeted to those in deep core need. BC Housing committed $13,500,000 to fund the 100 units.
In August 2003, a Request for Expressions of Interest was issued seeking developers interested in partnering in the redevelopment of Woodwards, potential commercial and retail market tenants, non-profit societies interested in providing services in a redeveloped Woodwards, and from non-profit housing sponsors interested in developing the 100 units of non-market housing allocated to Woodwards.
On February 24, 2004, Council invited three non-profit housing sponsors to reply to a Request for Proposals to develop the 100 units of non-market housing allocated to Woodwards. These were Affordable Housing Society, Columbia Housing Advisory Association and PHS Community Services Society. Eight other societies had only been interested in developing a portion of the non-market housing component, and they were identified as potential partners for the three selected societies.
On June 30, 2004, the closing date for the Request for Proposals, submissions were received from Affordable Housing Society and PHS Community Services Society.
On September 29, 2004, Council selected Westbank Projects Corp./Peterson Investment Group as the developer for the redevelopment of Woodwards.
PHASE II FEDERAL/PROVINCIAL AFFORDABLE HOUSING AGREEMENT
On December 3, 2004, the Federal and Provincial governments signed the second phase of the Canada/British Columbia Affordable Housing Initiative and announced that an initial four projects would be funded. Two of the four projects are to be developed in the City of Vancouver, including a second 100 units for the Woodwards redevelopment. The agreement allocated another $13,500,000 to fund the second 100 units in Woodwards, with the expectation that the mix of unit types and incomes in the second 100 units would be similar to the first 100 units.
With 200 instead of 100 units of non-market housing allocated to Woodwards, it is recommended that two separate non-market housing projects be included in the Woodwards' redevelopment. BC Housing and City staff believe that a single 200 unit project would be less able to respond to the needs in the community than two separate projects, and also believe that separating the family and singles components is preferable to mixing singles and families in each of the two projects. Consequently, it is recommended that a 75 unit project for low and modest income families be developed and a 125 unit project for low income singles be developed.
The 75 family unit project would accommodate 45 core need families of which half would be for deep core need families. As many of the families in the Downtown Eastside are aboriginal, Affordable, BC Housing and the City will explore a possible partnership with an aboriginal service provider to ensure that the family housing will provide aboriginal families with the necessary cultural support. The 125 singles unit project would all be targeted to core-need singles living in the areas residential hotels and rooming houses, and 100 of the units would accommodate singles in deep core need. Vancouver Coastal Health Authority will provide services to support the singles who may suffer from mental illness or addictions. For both the family and singles projects priority will be given to residents of the Downtown Eastside.
The developer's architect has reviewed the concept design for the redevelopment of Woodwards and advises that it should be possible to include the additional 100 units with the redevelopment. The City has the right to relocate some of the units allocated to Woodwards off-site if required, but it is a priority to accommodate all 200 non-market units on-site if at all possible. The overall design for the Woodward's redevelopment is still evolving and much will depend on whether SFU is included. However, at this time, it appears that all 200 units can be accommodated within the Woodwards' redevelopment.
SELECTION OF SPONSORS FOR THE NON-MARKET HOUSING IN WOODWARDS
With the allocation of another 100 units of non-market housing for Woodwards, the City could undertake a second proposal call for the second 100 units or cancel the first proposal call and undertake a new proposal call for all 200 units. However, both Affordable Housing Society and PHS Community Services Society are well established sponsors of non-market housing and, through the Request for Expressions of Interest process, were deemed viable candidates for the development and operation of the non-market housing in Woodwards and on that basis invited to respond to the Request for Proposals.
It is recommended that Affordable Housing Society be appointed to develop and operate the family housing component in the Woodwards' redevelopment and PHS Community Services Society be appointed to develop and operate the singles housing component. BC Housing concurs in this recommendation. Affordable Housing Society operates over 300 units of housing in the Downtown Eastside, including family housing, and has an extensive portfolio of family housing throughout Vancouver. PHS Community Services Society operates a portfolio of close to 400 units of housing, most supplemented with support services, serving singles who would otherwise be living in the residential hotels in the downtown many of whom suffer from mental illness or addictions. Both sponsors have agreed to this restructuring of the non-market housing concept for Woodwards, and both have confirmed their willingness to participate.
NEXT STEPS
If Council approves the recommendations, Affordable and PHS will begin working with the developer, BC Housing and the City to address design and other issues in preparation for presentation of the revised redevelopment concept to Council and the community. Staff expects that the design and costing for the non-market housing will be worked out over the next few months and expects to report back to Council later in 2005 for approval of a Development Agreement between the developer, the sponsors of the non-market housing, BC Housing and the City.
A crucial issue relates to funding as the $27,000,000 now committed by the Federal Government and the Province for the non-market housing in Woodwards is based on 2002 construction prices and the cost for the 200 units of non-market housing will exceed the current budget. BC Housing is aware of the issue and has committed to working with the developer and the City to ensure that a realistic budget is established. The City will likely have to supplement the Federal and provincial funding available for the project, but to what degree is yet to be determined. Staff will keep Council informed of the progress of these discussions and will report to Council for direction as required.
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