Developer pitches 4,000 'attainable' homes for Vernon
A Kelowna developer is proposing a huge development for Vernon featuring hundreds of affordably priced homes for a 1,000-acre site off Commonage Road.
Kerkhoff Develop-Build wants to build 250 homes to begin with ramping up to 4,000 new homes over the next 20 years at 580 Commonage Road.
"Attainable housing is the core of this project," Kerkhoff Develop-Build president Leonard Kerkhoff told iNFOnews.ca. "There is a housing crisis on our hands...(and) we're looking to do our part and move forward with a project that provides something different."
With almost 40% of Vernon residents unable to buy a home, Kerkhoff said the proposed development will offer something completely different than what's currently on offer.
"Attainable is building a home that's cost-effective enough that the everyday people living in Vernon or beyond can afford to buy with their incomes," he said.
It typically is 20% to 30% below the regular benchmark price, which in Vernon sits at $759,000.
To achieve a three-bedroom family home at an attainable price, Kerkhoff looked to the Sears catalogue, circa 1926.
"It's got dozens of floor plans that are 500 to 800 square feet, two-bedroom to three-bedroom homes. And this is the way homes were built back then," he said. "We're not looking at a traditional home in the traditional sense... our feeling is we need to go back to that."
The houses are quick to construct and average 800 square feet and outdoor space is decks or patios, with shared outdoor common space for playgrounds.
Of the 1,000-acre site, less than 40% of it will be built, and half of it will be gifted to the City of Vernon as parkland.
The 580 Commonage Vernon Lands project is looking at just 50% of all housing to be attainable, with some affordable rentals and some market housing and covering all housing types from single-family homes to townhomes and apartments. There will also be retail and commercial opportunities.
Before shovels go into the ground, Kerkhoff needs to win over Vernon city council.
The site needs the Official Community Plan changed and then rezoning from rural agriculture. A small part is in the Agricultural Land Commission that won't be touched.
Kerkhoff said city staff have been supportive of the development and providing council is on board, he thinks construction could start as early as next year.
The developer will also be on the hook to develop city services nearby and put in a multi-use path from 25 Avenue to the DND grounds, and build two new water reservoirs.
While there is no denying the need for housing, there's often pushback from residents.
"That's, of course, a number one consideration," Kerkhoff said.
"Vernon is in desperate need for housing in (a) big scale," he said.
The City has said it needs 4,000 homes in the next five years.
"To put that number of homes in the downtown core is simply not possible," he said. "If we can get 250 homes in the market this year and under construction next year, that's a significant win for the City of Vernon.
Over 10 years that would increase to 1,800 homes.
The development to due to go in front of Vernon council on Monday, Feb. 10.
For more information about the proposed development, go here.
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