Construction has begun in Brandon on the new housing co-operative envisioned by another co-op — the city’s Seniors for Seniors Co-op
Construction has begun on a seniors’ housing co-operative in Brandon that supporters say offers a new model for affordable housing other communities may want to explore.
Last week future residents and supporters of the Western Manitoba Seniors Non-Profit Housing Co-operative gathered at the 620 McDiarmid Street site where a 34-suite residence will be built by spring 2013.
The new $5.8-million housing co-op, with 14 one-bedroom and 20 two-bedroom suites, is the first housing co-op to be built in Manitoba using what’s known as an unequal share equity model, said Harvey Douglas, vice-president of the new co-operative.
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Unequal share equity
Unlike projects in the past, whereby those coming in paid the same amount for one share, Western Manitoba Seniors Housing Co-op’s future residents will make different equity contributions based on what size of suite they’re going into.
“It’s really based on the legislation for life-lease agreements,” said Douglas.
Geared to seniors with low to moderate incomes, the suites will rent for between $590 for a one bedroom to $740 for a two-bedroom apartment. Tenant equity contributions will be between $17,900 to $18,900 for a one bedroom, and $21,900 to $23,900 for a two bedroom.
The City of Brandon is also buying some equity shares, plus six units will be rented on a rent-geared-to-income (RGI) basis.
The co-op’s three partners include the City of Brandon, which is donating the acre of land as well as contributing financially, plus Westoba Credit Union and the Manitoba Housing Renewal Corporation. The housing co-op’s members have also put about $1 million toward the project.
It was another co-operative — Brandon’s Seniors for Seniors Co-op — that conceived the project and gained the support of those Douglas describes as “a lot of interested bystanders who took up the challenge. His own interest sprang from a career in construction. “I’ve been looking for ways to build smaller, more economical houses all my life,” he said.
Housing crunch
Brandon’s housing crunch is a huge issue, with a vacancy rate at less than one per cent and monthly rents typically $700 or more per month. Many seniors are very worried about whether they can continue to afford where they live, he said.
“I had one call me recently who had about $14,000 coming in (annual income) and she was living in a suite that was $780 a month,” he said. “It was impossible for her to make ends meet.”
The project’s completion date is next spring.
All 34 suites are spoken for and will be homes to a mix of Brandonites as well as others from around rural Manitoba. They aren’t keeping a waiting list because it would be too long, Douglas said.
“There’s no use in putting 250 people on a waiting list. City council, when they passed the bylaw for this, told us this is 34 (suites) of the 300 that are needed.”
Douglas said it is hoped the project will attract interest among other co-ops looking for safe investments and wanting to back similar projects elsewhere.
The key ingredient to getting a project off the ground is dedicated volunteers, he added.
“They have to be willing to keep pounding on doors to keep the excitement up,” he said. “We were told this would take us five years. We’ve done it in less than three. We’ve accomplished something in Brandon.”
In January the United Nations declared 2012 International Year of the Co-operative to showcase and raise the profile of the co-op business model around the world.
