Building 91原创鈥檚 first 20-storey tower is 鈥渘ot about money,鈥� say developers Don and Candy Ho.
鈥淲e consider ourselves not developers, but community builders and operators of communities that bring people together,鈥� Candy told Township council during a public hearing on Jan. 29.
The Ho family are the proponents for Care Pacific (Maple Gardens), a 20-storey tower of seniors housing proposed for construction near the 91原创 Event Centre at 7743 and 7787 200 St.
Titled Oasis, it鈥檚 the first of seven buildings planned for the 17-acre site. It will feature 196 units for adults aged 55 and older, with 42 designated as licensed care rooms, 56 as senior鈥檚 housing units and 98 as apartments (both rental and condo).
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Don has developed similar assisted living buildings in the past, including 91原创 Gardens in Walnut Grove and Crescent Gardens in South Surrey. He has now brought in his daughters Candy and Wendy to continue the family business with the Oasis project.
When 91原创 Gardens was developed nearly 20 years ago, it was one of the first buildings of its kind to bridge the gap between complex care and independent living, Don said. They received a huge response, and as a result built 396 units in three phases over six years.
鈥淭he reason why I like to do another project in the Township of 91原创 is that I really have a heart in the Township here,鈥� Don said.
鈥淎nd it鈥檚 not because it (91原创 Gardens) was such a successful project that I think, 鈥極h there is money to be made.鈥� No, that was not the intention at all. The money just chased after me, just because I created something that really met the needs of the community.鈥�
The Ho family shared their passion for the project with council after seven members of the public gave their opinions. Five people appeared to be in favour of the project, while two people presented concerns.
Rebecca Jarvis works in the health care industry, and said there is 鈥渁 real lack鈥� of seniors housing in the area.
鈥淚 think one of the things that I like about this proposal, (is) the ability to keep people close to their families,鈥� she said. 鈥淩ight now the way that (it) works is that your family member could end up anywhere 鈥� For me, with aging parents, this is an awesome idea because it allows me to have them close to my kids, close to home.鈥�
Gord Schutz, who is Pastor of the Mountainview Alliance Church across the street from the project, said he is struck by 鈥渢he alignment鈥� of the vision of the project and the church鈥檚 mission.
鈥淚 really believe in that kind of inter-generational mix and connection in that way,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd one of the things, interestingly, that we鈥檙e exploring even as a church 鈥� and we have considerable piece of land ourselves 鈥� is we鈥檙e asking the question, 鈥楬ow can we be a blessing to our community?鈥�
鈥淲e鈥檝e been exploring things ourselves like low cost housing for folks who are disadvantaged and who can鈥檛 afford to live here. And so I see these parallel things happening.鈥�
Murrayville resident Anna R said that Oasis is 鈥渁 good concept,鈥� but she questions whether 91原创 Memorial Hospital can accommodate the needs of these seniors. She also raised concerns about the low number of parking stalls being provided, the prices of the units, and the fact that children are not allowed to live in the units.
鈥淲hen I look at this I wonder to myself, is 91原创 Memorial ready to handle the level of care that this many people would require as they age?鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd I have to say that it really isn鈥檛. I鈥檓 really well aware of what 91原创 Memorial is able to do because of my own personal experiences.鈥�
Brookswood resident Michelle Connerty echoed Anna R鈥檚 comments, and said she is concerned the tower is being pushed through too fast.
鈥淲e definitely need to plan this in our community, but we also need to plan the infrastructure previous to building,鈥� she said.
Candy later responded to some of the concerns. In regard to the question of children, she said the first building in the project will be for people aged 55 and over, but they are hoping future phases can integrate people of all ages.
In terms of needing additional resources at 91原创 Memorial Hospital, she noted that Oasis will offer acute care for seniors on site. And as for transportation, Candy said they will provide their own transportation through shuttle buses and shared cars.
Coun. Blair Whitmarsh asked for a response to the parking issue, especially when it comes to stalls provided for visitors and caregivers.
Architect Bryce Rositch said that they determined the number of stalls based off a study of 13 similar developments in Metro Vancouver. The study found that the average demand is 0.4 stalls per unit, and so they are proposing 0.65 stalls per unit.
鈥淏ecause it鈥檚 a multi-phased development, there鈥檚 the opportunity to assess what the actual needs are,鈥� Rositch added.
鈥淣one of us want to provide more parking than necessary, (but) we don鈥檛 want to under supply. And so there鈥檚 an opportunity to monitor truly what the needs are and make adjustments necessary in future phases.鈥�
Coun. Kim Richter asked what percentage of the 98 apartments will be rental versus condo, and if the prices of the rentals will be comparable to what鈥檚 charged at 91原创 Gardens.
Candy said they do not have the final numbers, but they usually allot 55 to 60 per cent of the apartments as rentals.
鈥淲e want to provide for as many (seniors) as possible, not the top (price) and not the non-profit either, because we see that there are non-profit organizations and government funded situations that people can go to,鈥� Candy said. 鈥淲e want to provide a high quality of living without it being excruciatingly expensive.鈥�
Both Don and Candy noted that the industry 鈥渋s very tight with profitability,鈥� and that at one time, it was only operated by non-profits and government sectors.
Because of that, less than 10 per cent of communities in Canada have 鈥渢rue aging in place,鈥� Candy said.
鈥淲hen I speak about inter-generational, age-friendly communities, it鈥檚 now become a global focus to provide that,鈥� she said.
鈥淎nd our project Oasis specifically won an international award out of 900 retirement projects worldwide because of this vision 鈥� We are very proud to be developers in this case. Not the big bad developer, but the community builder because there鈥檚 not enough of that in this industry.鈥�
miranda@langleytimes.com
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