Municipal and provincial leaders joined the Ksan House Society to celebrate the opening of almost 100 new affordable homes in Terrace Tuesday afternoon.
The housing is divided between two separate building projects — Sonder House, a supportive housing project for the homeless and at-risk, and Stone Ridge Estates, an affordable housing project with modest rents for middle-income earners.
“Having both the new affordable housing and supportive housing programs adds significantly to our portfolio and gives us the opportunity to provide a better housing continuum to the community of Terrace,” says Amanda Bains, executive director of the Ksan House Society.” These new programs are just the beginning to fill a very large gap in the housing sector in the Northwest. We are thankful to both the Government of B.C, and the City of Terrace for their support.”
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The City of Terrace provided two parcels of land valued at about $661,000. For the Stone Ridge Estates project the City also provided a $250,000 Affordable Housing Fund grant and $178,000 in municipal waivers.
“The City of Terrace is pleased to have supported BC Housing and Ksan House Society in providing new, affordable and modern housing for people with low incomes or who are homeless,” says Terrace Mayor Carol Leclerc. “The contributions by the city are significant…A secure place to call home is the foundation of wellness. We wish each individual and family all the best in their new homes.”
For its part the B.C. government provided about $10 million in capital funding for Sonder House and $8.4 million for Stone Ridge Estates.
The latter is a three-storey apartment building with 45 units available for modest monthly rents of between $595 and $875.
Sonder House, at 4523 Olson Ave, features 52 units of supportive housing with 24/7 support for people currently experiencing homelessness. Ksan House Society will run the building and provide residents with meal programs, life and employment skills training and access to health and wellness support services.
“Northwest communities like Terrace were left to suffer under the weight of housing crisis for too long,” says North Coast NDP MLA Jennifer Rice, who attended the event on behalf of B.C.’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Selina Robinson. “These new homes will give people the peace of mind that comes from having a safe and affordable place to call home —something that every British Columbian deserves.”
The province’s contributions are part of the $7 billion allocated in the 2018 budget for the construction of 20,400 supportive and affordable homes for the homeless and for fixed- and middle-income earners.
More to come.
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