Non-profit breaks ground on 85-unit affordable housing on Bank Street
Centretown Citizens Ottawa Corp. is partnering with a private builder to transform a Glebe parking lot into mixed-income housing.
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A local non-profit housing provider has secured city approval to transform a parking lot in the Glebe into a nine-storey mixed-income development.
Centretown Citizens Ottawa Corp. (CCOC) will develop 574 Bank Street, located behind the colourful Glebe sign at the intersection of Bank Street and Chamberlain Avenue. The 690-square-metre lot will become home to approximately 85 residential units, 30 per cent of which will be affordable.
The real challenge now is funding the development phase. CCOC executive director Sarah Button explained that pre-construction capital is the biggest hurdle for non-profits. "We don't have a lot of free access to capital and the government programs that support us don't get that money until we start digging," Button said. "We have to figure out how to get from zero to construction on our own."
To overcome this obstacle, CCOC partnered with McDonald Brothers Construction Inc., which purchased the adjacent lot at 578 Bank Street. The two properties will be amalgamated, with CCOC owning and operating the residential units while McDonald Brothers handles the ground-floor commercial space. This ownership structure, Button said, could set a template for other non-profit developers.
"With this project and the time, there's an opportunity to lead the way as far as what these partnerships between non-profit housing providers and private-sector builders can look like," Button said.
The 52-year-old organization currently manages more than 50 properties across central Ottawa and has set a goal to add 850 new homes by 2034. To fund pre-development work, CCOC recently launched a community bond campaign, following a model used by other local organizations like Ottawa Community Land Trust.