Skip to content

Cowichan residents invited to apply for seats on affordable housing committees

“Lack of affordable housing is a critical issue in the Cowichan region”
18386127_web1_170511-CCI-M-cvrd-building-logo

The Cowichan Housing Association wants to hear from people that want to help get more affordable housing up and running in the region.

The CHA has created two committees to assist in the development of affordable housing for residents of the Cowichan region; a Community Advisory Committee and a Housing Trust Fund Allocations Committee. The Community Advisory Committee will provide advice to the Cowichan Housing Association on the strategic direction, funding priorities and implementation of the Regional Housing Service. The Housing Trust Fund Allocations Committee will review requests for financial assistance from the CVRD Housing Trust Fund and make recommendations to the CHA board of directors.

Residents of the Cowichan Valley Regional District who are interested in being part of ensuring that all citizens of the Cowichan region have appropriate, affordable housing are invited to contact the Cowichan Housing Association to get the terms of reference for the committees, to see if they might be a good fit.

“Lack of affordable housing is a critical issue in the Cowichan region, and we welcome the participation of area residents, elected officials and municipal staff in helping us to tackle this problem,” says Chris Hall, chairperson of the CHA board of directors.

Funding for the CVRD Housing Trust Fund was approved by taxpayers in a referendum during the last municipal elections. The funds collected will be used to provide capital contributions to affordable rental housing projects and support project development activities that lay the foundation for affordable housing developments.

“With both the federal and provincial governments aligned on the need for affordable housing the Housing Trust Fund represents an opportunity to attract investment in housing projects for the communities of the CVRD,” notes John Horn, executive director of the Cowichan Housing Association, adding “communities across B.C. will be seeking housing dollars and the support of the residents of the CVRD will be a big factor in making the Cowichan region a strong contender for those dollars.”

An initial meeting of the two committees will be held on Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. at the Ramada Duncan in the Driftwood room.