Image Credit: ADOBE STOCK
February 27, 2018 - 5:30 PM
VERNON - From new luxury houses to older homes being refurbished into four-plexes, there’s an awful lot of construction happening around Vernon right now.
It’s good news, says Vernon’s economic development manager Kevin Poole, since the city’s population continues to swell — faster in fact than the provincial average — and more people are expected to move here to fill a labour shortage. Poole says the arrival of big employers like lettuce producer VegPro and Restoration Lands Inc. at the former Lavington Glass Plant mean more people will be looking to make Vernon home.
“We need homes to put them in,” Poole says.
He says the influx of people moving to Vernon has led to a very low vacancy rate and developers have taken note.
“They know there’s demand,” Poole says.
The latest figures show new housing popped up throughout the city in 2017. Counting all types of housing — single family homes, apartments, and basement suites — 382 new units were created last year. Many were in upscale neighbourhoods like Predator Ridge (61 new units), the Foothills (49 units) and Middleton Mountain (31) but development was also strong in places like the city centre, Okanagan Landing and East Hill.
2017 new units by location
Image Credit: City of Vernon
“It paints a picture to me that there’s new development happening in every neighbourhood within the community, and that’s phenomenal to see,” Poole says.
Just what that development looks like varies. At Predator Ridge, you’ll find bigger, more expensive homes, while downtown you might find a condo or apartment. In neighbourhoods like East Hill, for example, a number of older homes are being re-developed into higher density duplexes and four-plexes, Poole says.
“We are getting a lot of infill, which is increasing density without drastically changing the city centre,” Poole says.
31 A St. proposal
Image Credit: City of Vernon
Meanwhile, a number of new housing developments are due to come online soon, including a 60-unit rental complex on Centennial Drive (The Terraces), a 37-unit affordable housing complex built by Vernon Native Housing, and The Hub, with 57 units. Another 43-unit apartment building has also been proposed on 31 A Street, where an apartment complex burned to the ground several years ago.
What Poole would like to see next is a development right in the downtown core that caters to younger people.
“A lot of people talk about wanting that,” he says. “Not just 55-plus but other housing options that have easy access to walk downtown.”
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