More than 50 residents of both False Creek South housing co-ops and stratas came out to meet the executive director of the Co-operative Housing Federation of BC (CHF BC), Thom Armstrong and find out more.

[fusion_testimonials design=”classic” backgroundcolor=”#ffe7af” textcolor=”” random=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_testimonial name=”Member of False Creek Housing Co-op” avatar=”male” image=”” image_border_radius=”” company=”” link=”” target=”_self”]Could a Community Land Trust model be applied along False Creek South to achieve community- and city-wide goals?[/fusion_testimonial][/fusion_testimonials]

The potential uses of community land trusts by housing co-ops and other tenure types are substantial and allow for significant innovation. It has been flexibly employed to protect conservation areas, agricultural lands and affordable housing in perpetuity in Canada, the US and other parts of the world.

In the field of housing, community land trusts can take on new development or redevelopment projects, and are often used to achieve economies of scale that allow a trust to achieve a range of community objectives and deliver services efficiently. These can include: Housing affordability through non-profit rental to affordable home ownership, asset management of buildings in the trust, offer insurance services to residents, build and enhance reserves through programs with financial institutions, undertake investments and refinancing, manage and guide leasehold renewal, as well as administration, reporting and tenant administration.

More important, and somewhat different from traditional housing societies, he pointed out that the most common themes included in the land trust vision statements are preservation/conservation, stewardship, community, affordability and growth. A distinguishing feature is the make-up of the board, which often includes representing residents, community members and government.

As we continue to deepen our lease renewal discussions with the City and our understanding of alternatives to the existing lease structure, for strata owners, non-profits and co-op members alike, the question has been posed, whether a land trust model could be applied along False Creek South to achieve community- and city-wide goals. The potential benefits of a shared approach to functions that have so far been isolated at the individual building level are being actively discussed by RePlan and its SLS and Co-op Committees.

We invite all interested community members and residents of Vancouver to join us for this exploration on September 8th at the SFU Harbour Centre. The Real Estate Foundation sponsored project “New Governance Models for Housing on Public Land”, implemented by the *RePlan Committee, will feature a prominent speaker from the Champlain Housing Trust in Vermont.

Stay tuned for more details… (by subscribing to our newsletter…?)

CHF BC's Land Trusts

 

Three community land trusts have been developed by CHF BC:
LT1, the original trust was incorporated in 1993 and includes 5 housing co-ops and one not-for-profit enclave.

In 2014 a second trust (LT2) was created to develop and operate 358 units of housing on four land parcels leased from the City of Vancouver for 99 years to be managed by a co-op and two non-profit organizations.

In 2015 a third trust (LT3) was created to be used for new developments, acquisitions, and major redevelopments of existing co-ops. It will provide and preserve housing opportunities for low and moderate income households. This third trust is already working with three housing co-ops to transfer their assets into the trust to then undertake new development and redevelopment.

Find out more on CHF's Website