In 1999 the Real Estate Foundation approved a $20,000 grant to the City of Port Moody to facilitate the development of a mixed-use affordable housing project on city-owned land. As part of the project, the City of Port Moody published a case study report to document the development process from the initial project analysis to the building permit application. The intent of the case study was to provide a model for similar activity by smaller B.C. municipalities that, although they have limited in-house resources of staff and expertise, might wish to address community housing needs.

Overview:

In 1999, the City of Port Moody applied to the Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia for a grant to facilitate the development of an affordable housing project on a municipally-owned site.

Port Moody had recognized that standard market housing remained unaffordable for certain segments of its population and/or did not meet their shelter needs. In the previous decade, government subsidy programs that traditionally addressed this imbalance had either been curtailed or eliminated. Some municipalities, chiefly the larger ones, were making efforts to fill this gap for their lower income populations, but smaller municipalities, like Port Moody, can lack the expertise and/or the resources to feel confident about tackling the issue. However, the City had already designated a municipally-owned site as a location for a seniors and/or affordable housing development, and had included this site, and its intended use, in its Official Community Plan (OCP).

In its application to the Real Estate Foundation, Port Moody stated that by developing an affordable housing project on a municipally-owned site and by utilizing the expertise of a consultant, the City would gain the experience necessary to facilitate future projects of this type. Port Moody also felt that the project could provide:

• An opportunity for a range of partnership possibilities for the site, including the non-profit sector, the private sector, and /or government housing agencies;
• Encouragement, and a model, for similar activity by smaller B.C. municipalities with limited in-house resources of staff and expertise, but with the desire to address community housing needs; and
• A contribution toward the development of municipal policy with regard to affordable housing, noting that the City was currently reviewing its Official Community Plan.

From the first decision to consider utilizing the Inlet Centre Site to develop affordable housing, the City proposed using a partnership approach. Municipal governments are in a unique position to best understand their local housing needs and they have regulatory powers that facilitate the development of new affordable housing, including: property tax policies, regulatory policies, zoning bylaws and helping to make land available to support the construction of affordable housing. While local governments play a key role in land-use decisions in their community, the provincial government, non-profit societies, community organizations, the development industry, health regions and housing professionals also have roles. The City recognized the importance of bringing together all these potential partners in an effort to develop affordable housing on the Inlet Centre Site.

(from the report prepared by Jim Woodward & Associates Inc., October 2001)