KinVillage could benefit from federal housing funding, according to federal Minister of Seniors Filomena Tassi, who toured the Tsawwassen seniors’ facility last week.
Tassi visited the Lower Mainland where she met with seniors, partners and other stakeholders to hear about issues important to older Canadians.
“The goal is to really get input on the ground so that we as a government can build on what we have done and know what the priorities are that Canadians are advocating for,” Tassi told the Optimist following her KinVillage visit alongside fellow cabinet minister and Delta MP Carla Qualtrough.
“I believe that there could be some funding through our national housing strategy or perhaps accessing funds through palliative care, money that is transferred to the province and then rolled out.”
Qualtrough said she would continue to champion for facilities like KinVillage.
“I think one of the things we know is how cherished KinVillage is in our community,” said Qualtrough. “One of the jobs of our office is to ensure that we can creatively access funding that maybe wouldn’t be obvious. There are a suite of programs that are available to communities and it’s our job at a local level to connect the community to those funding opportunities.”
Following a public hearing on Jan. 29, Delta council gave conditional approval to an ambitious redevelopment proposal for KinVillage.
The site currently contains three buildings ranging in height from one to three storeys. The current KinVillage operates 310 affordable rental units for seniors, including 68 in assisted living and 100 in residential care, as well as a community centre.
A total of 798 units are proposed in the redevelopment, comprising 544 seniors’ rental housing units, 119 units in congregate care and 135 community care beds.
The proposed development would be phased in over 10 to 15 years.
The first phase in the northwest corner, currently a parking lot, would allow tenants to transition into new buildings before any existing buildings are demolished.
Subsequent phases would include a new residential care facility, after which time the current residential care facility, including the community centre, would be torn down.
KinVillage CEO Donna Ellis said she anticipates it will be six months before a rezoning application is filed with the City of Delta.
“We hope by mid-2020 to have shovels in the ground and new housing for seniors by 2022,” Ellis said. “It’s very exciting. We met with BC Housing recently and they kept talking about occupancy, so that’s exciting because that means people are talking about people moving into a new home.
“This is what KinVillage has done for 40 years and hopefully into the future – we provide homes. It’s been a long journey to get to this point, but now it is really starting to feel tangible.”
