There was a big celebration early in the morning on Friday, July 19 in Port Hardy.
Members from Connective, a non-profit social services organization, the BC Rental Protection Fund, Port Hardy Mayor Pat Corbett-Labatt, Chief Administrative Officer Heather Nelson-Smith, Kwakiutl First Nation Hereditary Chief David Knox, all came together for a meet and greet outside of Creekside Apartments after the building was purchased.
The Rental Protection Fund had previously announced a day earlier the acquisition of nine properties across the island, which included three apartment buildings in Port Hardy (Creekside, Cypress, and New Horizons) that totalled 125 homes. The fund granted $7.9 million in funds, with a further $684,000 in renewing the three buildings. These units will rented for 20 per cent lower than the average current market value in Port Hardy.
The Rental Protection Fund was provided $500 million total by the provincial government, and it used the funds to purchase affordable residential rental buildings and co-operatives on the island to help protect renters and the units long-term. The RPF then transferred ownership of the properties over to the Connective Support Society, which is a non-profit.
Knox welcomed everyone to the First Nation's traditional territory, stating that it's "an honour for you guys to be here to talk about the housing situation, as we know it's in dear crisis so this is one big opportunity for the little town of Port Hardy to go and gain more great capacity, to be able to house our people better."
Corbett-Labatt noted in an interview with the Gazette the meet and greet was "very informative" and "good news for the town of Port Hardy, and great for the renters in those three buildings."
She added Connective will now be able to make sure the rent in the buildings is protected and kept affordable.
The three apartments were originally owned by Tracey and Mario Morrison and Greg and Andrea Vance.
"We are extremely proud of what we have collectively achieved in Port Hardy," said Vance in a written statement about the sale. "We saw the potential and opportunity in the community. We were willing to take risk where others had not. Port Hardy definitely has a whole host of unique complexities and challenges. Many of these hurdles are a function of homelessness, mental health and addiction, but we genuinely believe it has incredible future potential."
Vance listed the condition of what each building was in when they purchased them, which can be read in full below.
Creekside Apartments
The building had sat condemned and uninhabited for over two years after a fire and was a considerable eyesore for the community. Vance's company purchased the building in April of 2019 from the insurer.The fire-damaged corner of the roof was tarped and unrepaired. They partnered with North Island Community Futures under the leadership of Lawrie Garrett and began a complete restoration/renovation of all 47 units, including significant work done to the roof and exterior cladding repair, replacement of all exterior windows, and doors. They renovated all the common areas, laundry rooms, hallways and fire exits, and an entirely new lobby and main entryway and access systems. The building was also retrofitted with Telus Fibre Optic. By July of 2021, the building was fully rented and they were busy working with VIHA and other agencies extensively to aid in housing for recruiting and filling critical jobs in Port Hardy.
Highland / Cypress Park
Vance's company purchased Highland Manor in January of 2021. The building was in terrible disrepair. Only 10 of 50 units in the building were officially tenanted and many were uninhabitable and in very unsafe condition. The building was a hub for drug trafficking and was the scene of countless tragedies. The RCMP and Port Hardy Fire Rescue were attending multiple times weekly and often multiple times daily. Through multi-agency effort and plenty of support from local trades people, they were able to get the building stable and begin a full scale restoration in October of 2022. Over the course of the last 20 months, they completely restored the interior of the building. With the exception of a handful of occupied suites, they were all entirely gutted and renovated to a very nice standard with all new flooring, kitchens, bathrooms, lighting and appliances. The two lobbies and entryways were renovated, all hallways and fire exits were completely redone with new paint, carpeting and led lighting, including replacement of all of the fire system devices and safety equipment. The laundry room was completely renovated with new laundry facilities, and they installed TELUS Fibre Optic throughout the building.
New Horizon
The building was purchased in August of 2022 and was in respectable condition. Vance's company ended up renovating multiple units and renovated all of the common areas, lobby and hallways.
Vance noted they had decided early on in the process that while restoring the buildings, they were going to do "everything possible to support local in any way we could. The vast majority of products and construction materials used were procured from Port Hardy. Particular kudos to Dunlop’s Home Hardware for consistent and fair supply and pricing."
He added that 95 per cent of the people who helped make this all happen "are locals who genuinely took pride in making a difference in the community. Our main contractor, Ken Houghton, was a godsend. He and his whole crew handled this project for almost four years as if it were his own. Special shoutouts to K&K Electric, Brian Texmo, Bob’s Flooring, Marshall’s Glass and Paul Perkovich Plumbing. We could not have achieved what we did without any of these fine people and businesses. The support and confidence of the North Island Community Futures Office, and Lawrie Garrett specifically, had a major impact on the ultimate success of our whole initiative."
