BC Housing pushing forward with King Edward supportive housing tower

October 2022 updated artistic rendering of the supportive housing tower at 1406-1410 King Edward Avenue, Vancouver. (Stantec Architecture/BC Housing)

BC Housing is taking its King Edward-Knight supportive housing tower project to the next stage towards being ready for construction.

The project at 1406-1410 King Edward Avenue — the southeast corner of the intersection of King Edward Avenue and Knight Street in the Kensington-Cedar Cottage neighbourhood — saw its rezoning application approved by Vancouver City Council in a public hearing in June 2022.

As of this week, a development permit application has been submitted for review.

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Compared to the previous rezoning stage, there are only very minor architectural design changes to the plan to build a 181-ft-tall, 14-storey tower, using permanent modular construction and a Passive House green building design standard. The design and construction firms are Stantec Architecture and the Bird/Stack Modular.

The 109 studio units of single-occupancy supportive housing will be dedicated to the needs of the Indigenous population experiencing or at risk of homelessness, with the building set to be operated by Vancouver Native Housing Society and Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Centre Society.

1406-1410 King Edward Avenue Knight supportive housing vancouver bc October 2022

October 2022 updated artistic rendering of the supportive housing tower at 1406-1410 King Edward Avenue, Vancouver. (Stantec Architecture/BC Housing)

As a transition directly from street homelessness or shelters, these units will be highly affordable, with half of the units set at maximum monthly rents of $375 for annual incomes of $15,000 and under, and the remaining half of the units at monthly starting rents of between $375 and $719 for annual incomes from $15,000 to $28,750.

Similar to other buildings that see social/supportive housing uses, each unit will have its own washroom, kitchen, living area, and storage. Ample amenity spaces will be provided to residents, including within the first three levels of the building, and an expansive indoor and outdoor amenity area on the tower rooftop.

The total floor area will be about 73,000 sq ft for a floor area ratio density of a floor area that is about 11 times larger than the size of the lot, which is currently vacant — located next to Kingcrest Park and just across from King Edward Village. There will be four vehicle parking stalls for building workers, plus 153 secured bike parking spaces for all users.

Site of 1406-1410 East King Edward Avenue, Vancouver. (Stantec Architecture/BC Housing)

1406-1410 East King Edward Avenue Vancouver supportive housing

Site of 1406-1410 East King Edward Avenue, Vancouver. (Stantec Architecture/BC Housing)

October 2022 updated artistic rendering of the supportive housing tower at 1406-1410 King Edward Avenue, Vancouver. (Stantec Architecture/BC Housing)

During the single-night public hearing with City Council, the King Edward-Knight supportive housing project saw little public opposition or even neighbourhood attention — relative to the overwhelming opposition over the highly controversial Kitsilano supportive housing project next to SkyTrain’s future Arbutus Station, which was also approved weeks later after six public hearing dates.

Both the King Edward-Knight and Kitsilano supportive housing projects are sisters — part of a 2020-signed agreement between BC Housing, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, and the City of Vancouver to build permanent supportive housing using modular construction on City-owned properties, as a way to help address the homeless crisis worsened by the pandemic.

Construction on the King Edward-Knight supportive housing project is expected to begin sometime in 2023. The use of modular construction will expedite the construction timeline compared to conventional building techniques.

BC Housing has yet to submit a development permit application for the Kitsilano supportive project, which is currently facing a legal challenge. A group representing Kitsilano residents filed a court petition earlier this month seeking a judicial review of City Council’s public hearing process.

October 2022 updated artistic rendering of the supportive housing tower at 1406-1410 King Edward Avenue, Vancouver. (Stantec Architecture/BC Housing)

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