By Ian Holmes

Unique affordable housing facility set to open in Nanaimo

Apr 30, 2018 | 5:12 PM

NANAIMO — Through-the-roof hydro bills won’t be a problem at a new affordable housing complex in Nanaimo.

The Nanaimo Aboriginal Centre expects their two storey, 25-unit facility on Bowen Rd. near Pryde Ave. will be filled up with about 70 tenants by the end of May. Executive director Chris Beaton told NanaimoNewsNOW the building is the first on the island north of the Malahat to have a Passive House designation, meaning each unit is proven to reduce energy consumption by 85 per cent.

He said measures like reinforced insulation for floors, windows and doors helps keep the cold out of the units, which are outfitted with heat recovery ventilation.

“That addresses affordability, our tenants will not ever see a hydro bill that gets anywhere close to a $100 a month in the dead of winter, in fact they should be below $20 a month for a three-bedroom townhouse.”

Monthly rent for the complex, called Nuutsumuut Lelum, ranges from $375 for bachelor suites to $900 for three-bedroom townhouse units, which Beaton said are geared toward but not exclusively for Indigenous people.

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He said four suites are set aside for Indigenous youth transitioning between an in-care to independent living environment.

Beaton said young families will be a core makeup of the facility, who will occupy the 13 three-bedroom units.

He said features like all of the units facing each other, a community kitchen, courtyard with a fire pit and two enclosed play areas will help create a family feel.

“We’re not here alone, you have neighbours,” Beaton said. “In the more traditional sense we would rely on each other in a community and we’re hoping that this community fosters that.”

Beaton said tenants who no longer require affordable housing will be asked to move on.

The Bowen Rd. building, which features prominent cedar siding, includes a towering 37-foot-high totem pole made by Snuneymuxw First Nation carver Noel Brown.

The project’s budget is $6.4 million, which BC Housing contributed $4.7 million and the City of Nanaimo providing the land.

Ian@NanaimoNewsNow.com

On Twitter: @reporterholmes