Sokeyah housing development opens 104 units for local Indigenous Peoples in Surrey
The project’s second phase is part of the province’s affordable housing plan and offers secure housing for Indigenous residents
Phase two of Sohkeyah is located at 7565 140 St. in Surrey. (Submitted)
Surrey saw growth in its housing market this summer with the official opening of phase two the Sohkeyah development, which offers affordable housing units in Surrey for Indigenous individuals, families, and Elders.
The development’s second phase added 104 new homes, which include 44 in a three-storey building and 66 in a four-storey building. Sohkeyah, which means robin’s nest, is owned and operated by the Kekinow Native Housing Society and funded by the B.C. government through a provincial $19-billion housing investment program that has been in action since 2017.
In an email statement to The Runner, the B.C. Ministry of Housing wrote its government is determined to ensure everyone in the province has access to affordable housing.
“We’re working to make up for years under the previous government where the homes people needed weren’t getting built and we’re seeing record population growth as people decide to move to B.C. Global inflation is now driving up costs for people even further,” the B.C. Ministry of Housing wrote.
Through BC Housing, the Community Housing Fund, and various partners, the provincial government is in the midst of a 10-year plan to “subsidize more than 20,000 affordable rental homes for people with moderate and low incomes.”
“Since 2017, nearly 80,000 homes have been delivered or are underway throughout the province, including more than 1,800 homes in Surrey,” the ministry wrote.
It also is looking to tackle various issues relating to zoning and permitting, and is offering forgivable loans to build secondary suites, introducing new rules on turning more short-term rentals into long-term ones, utilizing low-cost and public lands, and bringing about “small-scale, multi-unit and transit-oriented development zoning changes,” among other strategies.
The Sohkeyah development is important as Indigenous Peoples face challenges in finding, and retaining, on and off-reserve housing, the ministry wrote.
“That’s why the Province and BC Housing are working with First Nations and Indigenous Partners to increase culturally appropriate housing for Indigenous residents across British Columbia, creating and preserving spaces where Indigenous community members feel culturally safe and supported.”
B.C. partnered with First Nations and Indigenous communities to create the Indigenous Housing Fund in 2018, in which $1.7 billion was invested to build 3,500 new homes. More than 1,500 units have been built since.
The ministry wrote that phase two of the Sohkeyah development can help contribute to creating more community vibrancy, where people can live and work closer together and spend less time and money commuting.
“By providing more homes at a range of rents, it will help to tackle the labour shortage in areas where too many middle-income people simply can’t find housing,” the ministry wrote.
The province’s commitment to reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples includes the housing sector, the ministry added.
“The Ministry of Housing has a mandate letter commitment to work with Indigenous Partners to identify and deliver on Indigenous housing priorities for the Province,” the ministry wrote, adding it also has an action in the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act action plan to work with Indigenous Peoples to build more on and off-reserve housing.
The Kekinow Native Housing Society owning and operating the development, alongside support from the Aboriginal Housing Management Association “is reflective of Indigenous leadership and partnership in the housing sector, and of the Province’s approach to advancing reconciliation,” the ministry wrote.
The Kekinow Native Housing Society was unavailable for comment before publication.
