By Steve Hubrecht
Frustrated by the lack of accessible housing and affordable housing in the Columbia Valley, several local residents have taken matters into their own hands and are planning a new development in downtown Invermere.
The project — called the Invermere Accessible Living Plaza (IALP) — has been a dream for valley resident and Recreation Adapted (RAD) Society founder Tanelle Bolt for years. Bolt, an interior designer by profession and outdoor enthusiast by passion, sustained a spinal cord injury more than a decade ago and has used a wheelchair ever since. Her injury changed her life in countless ways, but has also made her realize how difficult living in a small mountain town can be for those who face mobility challenges.
“If I didn’t have the amazing support system I do, I probably wouldn’t be able to live here,” Bolt told the Pioneer.
Bolt has been frequently frustrated that many new housing developments in Invermere either have fairly minimal accessibility standards, or have full accessibility in only some units. She wondered: why not have all units be fully accessible? Bolt pointed out that those with mobility challenges include not just wheelchair users, but many other demographics, such as seniors, those who have suffered strokes, and just about anyone else who uses walkers.
About a year ago, she and some likeminded people decided to create their own housing project. The project is still very much in the concept and planning stages, but plenty has been done already, and the IALP group presented to Invermere councillors during a recent committee of the whole meeting. They will also hold community engagement events on Friday, May 9 and Saturday, May 10.
The plan envisions a four-and-a-half storey mixed-use residential and commercial building on 7th Avenue (Invermere’s main street), not far from 7th Avenue’s intersection with 4th Street (by Sobeys and the Columbia Valley Centre).
The plaza will include 47 fully accessible rental units (ranging from one bedroom to three bedrooms) arranged around an open courtyard, green space and a lobby, with commercial business space on the lower levels. A total of 20 per cent of the rental units will be offered at 20 per cent below market rental rates.
“The idea is that it’s a place for people not just to live, but to be able to be well, physically, mentally, emotionally, and socially,” said Bolt. “In the past, as an interior designer, I built in barriers (to accessibility) because I didn’t know any better. I want to do better, and this project is a chance to do that.”
Screenshot shows the plan for the Accessible Living Plaza in Invermere where public engagement will result in community feedback.
The affordable rental units will be for residents caught in the valley’s ongoing housing crisis, explained Bolt. This includes “single parents with children, staff of local businesses, people in transition in life, who may be thinking of moving to Invermere but want to try living here for six months before finding more permanent housing, and many others,” she outlined.
The IALP group includes two more well-known valley residents — Station Pub owner Ryan Karl is a partner in the project, and Mountain Homes Productions (MHP) co-owner Stephen Raaflaub is IALP’s project manager — as well as Vancouver Island-based infrastructure planner Kelly Miller and architects Melanie Wilson and Mark Ashby.
None of the housing units will be for sale, but the commercial space will be sold as strata to offset the cost of building the project.
“I want to prove that a development such as this can be viable, it can make money,” said Bolt. “That it’s not just developments with minimum accessibility and minimum affordability that can be financially viable, but also those with full accessibility and actual affordability.”
The project is estimated to cost $31 million in total. The group plans to raise 60 per cent of the cost through private investment, 35 per cent through BC Builds low-interest loans, and 15 per cent through grants and subsidies such as the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC)’s Affordable Housing Fund, the BC Builds Community Housing Fund, and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM)’s Green Municipal Fund: Sustainable Affordable Housing Fund.
Bolt said public response so far has been “overall very positive.”
Invermere councillors seem cautiously keen on the idea, but have pointed to a need to first significantly upgrade Invermere’s water and sewer capacity. This issue has already created several problems throughout the district in recent years, and has slowed several housing developments.
The IALP group will need a zoning amendment for the project’s height, but the land on which they plan to build has already been purchased, and is already zoned for mixed residential and commercial use.
The public engagement sessions will be held at the project site at 403 7th Avenue. The session on Friday, May 9 is from 2 to 4 p.m. and the one on Saturday, May 10 is from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
To find out more visit www.ialp.ca.
