June 19, 2020

Update on Affordable Housing at Beulah Creek Village

In November 2018, the BC government awarded Hornby Island Housing Society 2.6 million dollars towards the construction of 26 units of moderate to low‐income rental homes for workers, families, and seniors at 5040 Central Road. The Society’s proposal was given a Class A rating by the province’s housing authority, BC Housing – the highest score possible.  We felt that we were well on our way.

That was nineteen long months ago. Since then, the Society has slowly, slowly been making progress with Beulah Creek Village, confronting numerous hurdles along the way. BC Housing has stringent demands in many directions, not the least for energy efficiency, sustainability, and affordability. All of these requirements must be met for our designs to be approved.

Our team of architects and engineers, Studio 531 and Herold Engineering, drew up preliminary schematic plans for the project, and these were sent to BC Housing for their assessment last January. That review has now been successfully completed. We anticipate receiving the next installment of funding shortly which will enable us to get back to work with the team to develop a detailed design that we can bring to the community for feedback. We are hopeful that plans will be ready to present by later this summer.

Step by step! With good input from the Hornby community, applications for the development permits from Islands Trust can be submitted, and then more reviews with BC Housing will follow. If we can reach “Final Project Approval” while the province still has funding available for affordable housing, construction will begin. Stay tuned and optimistic!