COQUITLAM, B.C., October 17, 2023 – As part of its vision to increase housing supply and promote housing affordability, the City of Coquitlam is partnering with S.U.C.C.E.S.S. to deliver two new seniors’ rental housing developments.
Aligned with Coquitlam’s Housing Affordability Strategy, the City initiated the seniors’ housing developments by providing two City-owned land parcels in the Lougheed-Burquitlam and Maillardville neighbourhoods. Following a Request for Proposal process and evaluation, Coquitlam has selected S.U.C.C.E.S.S. as the housing partner to develop and operate the residences at both sites.
S.U.C.C.E.S.S. has also committed $250,000 for initial planning of the development, and will work with the City to acquire further funding from provincial and federal levels of government. Provided all necessary approvals and funding are in line, construction could begin as early as next year with completion by 2027.
Growing Affordable Housing in the Community
As set out in the Request for Proposal, the first project anticipates a three-story, medium-density purpose-built rental apartment building with 37+ units for seniors at 290 Laval Square. The building will be integrated with the plaza next door at Maillardville Community Centre. The second project envisions a six-story wood-frame building with approximately 100 seniors’ housing units at 602 Sydney Avenue, at the former Burquitlam Lions Care Centre.
Once complete, the two buildings will create almost 140 new housing units and deliver real results in supporting Coquitlam seniors’ quality of life, focused on those in the low to middle-income bracket.
Quotes
“Coquitlam is leading the way to bolster housing supply by providing two pieces of city-owned land to serve the needs of our community and to help address the housing crisis in our region. S.U.C.C.E.S.S. has a long history of supporting our residents in a variety of ways, which makes them an excellent fit to partner on this project that will bring much-needed rental housing for seniors.” – Mayor Richard Stewart, City of Coquitlam
“We’re thrilled to partner with the City of Coquitlam to help local seniors continue to live in a community they love that supports their quality of life. S.U.C.C.E.S.S. has been helping to provide affordable housing since 2008 and today we operate nearly 1,000 housing units across Metro Vancouver, with more on the way. We also have a long history of providing seniors services, so we’re eager to bring our expertise to this project to ensure Coquitlam seniors can live independently longer and age well in their own neighbourhoods.” – Queenie Choo, CEO, S.U.C.C.E.S.S.
About the Selection Process
In August 2022, the City issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for potential partners to develop and operate non-market seniors housing on two City-owned sites through a 60-year lease at a nominal lease rate.
The City evaluated each of the proposals on the following criteria:
- Experience in development
- Construction and property management
- Level of support (e.g. equity contribution)
- Compatibility with candidates’ other development schedules
The City’s evaluation panel ultimately identified S.U.C.C.E.S.S as the successful proponent for both project sites based on the strength of their proposal.
Project Will Help Address Seniors’ Housing Crunch
Coquitlam’s Housing Needs Report adopted in February 2022 identified a clear need for new seniors’ housing as the population ages. Senior-led households (65+) are expected to be the largest demographic in Coquitlam in the next 10 years. While many of these seniors will continue to live independently, more assisted living and residential care beds will be needed.
In particular, these two new development sites also connect seniors with the accessibility and services they need and depend on: nearby amenities, shops, public transit and more.
About S.U.C.C.E.S.S.
Founded in 1973, S.U.C.C.E.S.S. is one of the largest social service agencies in Canada. Our multicultural, non-profit charitable organization offers a wide range of programs and services that promote the belonging, wellness, and independence of people at all stages of their Canadian journey. Programs and services are offered in the areas of newcomer settlement, English language training, employment and entrepreneurship, family, youth and seniors programming, health education, community development, seniors care and affordable housing. Learn more at successbc.ca.
Coquitlam a Regional Housing Leader
Unique in Metro Vancouver, Coquitlam’s Housing Affordability Strategy has significantly improved the City’s housing landscape through incentives that create more rental housing. Since the strategy’s adoption in 2017, there have been 937 new rental homes occupied in Coquitlam, of which 732 are market rental units and 205 are below or non-market rental units. Furthermore, there are a record 11,344 new units of purpose-built rental and 2,128 units of below-market and non-market rental in the development process in Coquitlam.
Through the Housing Affordability Strategy, the City leverages its role and available tools as a municipality to:
- Offer developers the ability to build more units (density incentives) in order to create dedicated rental units;
- Secure partnerships with the development sector, senior levels of government and housing providers; and
- Redirect some density bonus contributions from development to the Affordable Housing Reserve Fund to support new affordable housing projects.
Since 2018, the City has granted over $12 million through the Affordable Housing Reserve Fund to support the creation of over 750 non-market and below-market rental units.
Media contact
Genevieve Bucher
City of Coquitlam
Director, Community Planning
604-927-3490
gbucher@coquitlam.ca
Elaine O’Connor
S.U.C.C.E.S.S.
Director, Strategic Communications and Partnerships
media@success.bc.ca
We acknowledge with gratitude and respect that the name Coquitlam was derived from the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ (HUN-kuh-MEE-num) word kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (kwee-KWET-lum) meaning “Red Fish Up the River”. The City is honoured to be located on the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm traditional and ancestral lands, including those parts that were historically shared with the q̓ic̓əy̓ (kat-zee), and other Coast Salish Peoples.