Market conditions concentrating low-income housing on Skaha Lake Road

PENTICTON – It’s more by coincidence than design, but a section of Skaha Lake Road is being transformed as low-income housing projects continue to come on stream in Penticton.

The conversion of the Bel Air Motel into Fairhaven two years ago at 2670 Skaha Lake Rd. added 42 low income units to the 57 privately owned, low-income units at the Meadowlark, Sun Valley and Mayfair motels located at 2730 Skaha Lake Rd. just a block away.

Laura Mathews with B.C. Housing says one of the goals when purchasing motel or hotel units is to create new units of affordable housing. That’s one reason why the low-income housing provider passed on the recently purchased Meadowlark, Sun Valley and Mayfair motels in favour of the Bel Air property in 2016.

Mathews says the three properties were not considered after it was deemed the Bel Air property made the most sense, as well as meeting the needs of the housing project.

B.C. Housing is also planning a 52-unit modular housing project at the Skaha Sunrise Motel site at 2872 Skaha Lake Rd. for a total of 151 units along that stretch of road.

Mathews says B.C. Housing considers and discusses with local governments the implications of converting a motel and whether the location is appropriate for housing.

Penticton mayor Andrew Jakubeit said in an email it's better to have a healthy mix of housing in neighbourhoods, as opposed to isolating people based on social, economic, age or cultural demographics. He said the owner of three motel properties recently sold, and presently used for low-income housing, has not applied to the city for any changes to those properties yet.

City of Penticton planning manager Blake Laven says the city’s Official Community Plan doesn’t take a stance on the type of resident being housed, but does allow for densification in areas where the Skaha Lake Road housing projects are taking place. The community plan also supports affordable housing as a policy.

Laven says there are pros and cons associated with concentrated social housing.

He said non-profit agencies create efficiencies by having their clients in close proximity to each other, but on the other hand, having supported housing concentrated in one location can concentrate negative behaviours of some of the residents.

“Level of support and housing management are crucial factors,” he explained in an email, adding start-up issues at the Fairhaven project resulted from a resident mix highly concentrated with high-needs residents combined with a lack of security and the absence of an independent operator.

Laven says the city and its housing partners all learned some lessons from the Fairhaven experience that they will use on the new projects. Ask Wellness presently operates Fairhaven, which also has a more managed mix of residents now.

B.C. Housing has guaranteed funding for the ongoing operation of the Skaha Lake Road sites, he says.

Laven says recent public meetings saw some residents and business people complaining about the number of units being created on the Main Street, but he feels the locations will result in a heightened sense of responsibility among the residents, as well as generating more oversight and security than might be the case if the units were located in a more segregated location.

It’s more coincidence than anything else the motels being turned into low-income housing units are in close proximity to each other, as the properties are at a similar point in age and usage.

“We hope it works. Homelessness is a problem, not just here but in Kelowna, Vernon, everywhere. Council’s been open to trying this supported housing model, everybody’s taking a risk, but this model has been successful in other areas it’s been used,” Laven said.

“They’ve got to go somewhere. It might not be the absolutely perfect location, but that seldom is the case,” he says.

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