BC Housing has told the District of Sechelt that it expects to begin work on a three-storey, 40-unit, supportive housing project on Jan. 3.
The necessary zoning and official community plan amendments for the building at 5656 Hightide Ave. were given final adoption by Sechelt council on Dec. 19.
BC Housing filed the application in February for the project, which is being built as part of the agency’s Rapid Response to Homelessness initiative. As well as the living units, the building will have space for meal services, offices for counselling, and be staffed 24/7.
BC Housing, on behalf of Metric Modular, the company handling the construction, has also asked the district for an exemption to certain parts of the noise bylaw in order to speed up work to meet the March 31 target for occupancy.
“We are working to align the timing of the completion of the project with the Upper Deck Hostel residents being able to move in prior the lease expiry, as well as meet the program funding targets,” said BC Housing’s Naomi Brunemeyer, director of regional development, in a letter to council.
BC Housing’s lease of the Upper Deck will expire April 30, 2020.
The request was to allow work at the site from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
Coun. Matt McLean asked to amend the Sunday hours to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. “An hour’s worth of construction productivity is worth a lot less than an hour’s worth of sleep on a Sunday. I think we’ll get a lot less complaints from the public if we just shift that to 9 a.m. and it won’t have too much of an impact on the project,” he said.
