Prince George - A partnership involving BC Housing, Northern Health, and the City of Prince George

Consultation has concluded

Prince George City Council is holding a Public Hearing regarding the applications for rezoning and amendment to the Official Community Plan for 805/855 1st Avenue and 190 Ontario Street. The hearing is scheduled for Monday, February 24 at 7:00pm in Council Chambers of City Hall, 2nd floor, 1100 Patricia Boulevard, Prince George.

Residents are invited to provide comment in writing or in person.

Submissions in person

Residents can speak in person during the Public Hearing in Council Chambers on the 2nd Floor of City Hall at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, February 24, 2020. City of Prince George open Council meetings are public and may be televised, streamed live by webcast, recorded and archived on the City’s website for viewing by the public.

Submissions in writing

Written comments should be forwarded to the Corporate Officer by 5:00 p.m., Tuesday, February 18, 2020, to be included in Council’s agenda package. Submissions received after this time will be provided to Council on the day of the public hearing for Council’s consideration. Submissions may be sent by email to cityclerk@princegeorge.ca, faxed to (250) 561-0183, mailed or delivered to the address noted below. Please note that written submissions for all applications will form part of the Council agenda, become public record and are posted on the City’s website.

For more information, please contact Development Services in person, by telephone at (250) 561-7611 or by email to devserv@princegeorge.ca

BC Housing, the City of Prince George and Northern Health are partnering to add affordable housing integrated with healthcare services to serve the community’s most vulnerable populations and improve downtown Prince George. This innovative housing-health project would provide up to 100 new, affordable, energy efficient homes with supports and services to help people recover and stay healthy.

The proposed location for the mixed-use development is at 805/855 1st Avenue, the current location of NR Motors. The City has an agreement with the NR Motors ownership to purchase the property, subject to rezoning, an amendment to the Official Community Plan, environmental and geotechnical review, and project approval.

The proposed concept includes ground-floor healthcare space in each building that would be accessible to both residents and the public. Northern Health, in partnership with other health service agencies, will be responsible for overseeing these spaces and providing primary care, harm reduction, and specialized mental health and substance-use services. This proposed project addresses recommendations in Northern Health’s 2017 downtown health services plan.

We welcome questions and input to communityrelations@bchousing.org or through the Q&A tool below.



Prince George City Council is holding a Public Hearing regarding the applications for rezoning and amendment to the Official Community Plan for 805/855 1st Avenue and 190 Ontario Street. The hearing is scheduled for Monday, February 24 at 7:00pm in Council Chambers of City Hall, 2nd floor, 1100 Patricia Boulevard, Prince George.

Residents are invited to provide comment in writing or in person.

Submissions in person

Residents can speak in person during the Public Hearing in Council Chambers on the 2nd Floor of City Hall at 7:00 p.m. on Monday, February 24, 2020. City of Prince George open Council meetings are public and may be televised, streamed live by webcast, recorded and archived on the City’s website for viewing by the public.

Submissions in writing

Written comments should be forwarded to the Corporate Officer by 5:00 p.m., Tuesday, February 18, 2020, to be included in Council’s agenda package. Submissions received after this time will be provided to Council on the day of the public hearing for Council’s consideration. Submissions may be sent by email to cityclerk@princegeorge.ca, faxed to (250) 561-0183, mailed or delivered to the address noted below. Please note that written submissions for all applications will form part of the Council agenda, become public record and are posted on the City’s website.

For more information, please contact Development Services in person, by telephone at (250) 561-7611 or by email to devserv@princegeorge.ca

BC Housing, the City of Prince George and Northern Health are partnering to add affordable housing integrated with healthcare services to serve the community’s most vulnerable populations and improve downtown Prince George. This innovative housing-health project would provide up to 100 new, affordable, energy efficient homes with supports and services to help people recover and stay healthy.

The proposed location for the mixed-use development is at 805/855 1st Avenue, the current location of NR Motors. The City has an agreement with the NR Motors ownership to purchase the property, subject to rezoning, an amendment to the Official Community Plan, environmental and geotechnical review, and project approval.

The proposed concept includes ground-floor healthcare space in each building that would be accessible to both residents and the public. Northern Health, in partnership with other health service agencies, will be responsible for overseeing these spaces and providing primary care, harm reduction, and specialized mental health and substance-use services. This proposed project addresses recommendations in Northern Health’s 2017 downtown health services plan.

We welcome questions and input to communityrelations@bchousing.org or through the Q&A tool below.



CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.

We want to hear from you!

Important note: To protect your own privacy, please do not include any identifying information such as your name or address.

All questions will be responded to within 24-48 hours during our business hours, Monday to Friday 8:30am – 4:30PM.


  • Will these be wheelchair accessible?

    sophie asked 11 months ago

    BC Housing Design Guidelines require that between 5-12% of units in a housing project be designed for wheelchair accessibility, so that would mean 3-6 units would be accessible for both the proposed supportive and affordable rental housing buildings. In addition, common areas would be designed to allow universal access.

  • What will these residents "food system" look like?

    Del asked 11 months ago

    Evaluating existing food options was part of the Downtown Prince George Health Services Review done by Northern Health Authority. Access to food is an important consideration as we begin to discuss operational needs as part of the design proposal. The operator, who has not yet been selected, would be providing on-site meal services to residents on a daily basis.

  • My daughter is a tax payer on Henderson avenue in Pg and has asked more than once to have a curb where gutters already exist and has had no success and.you want us to support free housing for the homeless and low income , well I say she has worked hard to buy a small home and so did we , I’m sorry but it’s all about choices and they obviously made poor ones so I surely couldn’t support this project in any way shape or form

    Sharpinder asked 11 months ago

    The proposal for 1st Avenue is an integrated housing-health project that would include supportive housing, affordable rental housing and onsite clinic space. Residents of both the supportive housing and affordable rental housing would pay rent for their homes. 

  • Hello does this apply to me? I want to get into housing in BC with my two children ages 8and 2.5 I’m a single mother looking to relocate

    Minazane asked 11 months ago

    The affordable rental housing proposed for the second phase of this integrated housing-health project would be for low-to-moderate income Indigenous individuals and families. At this point, this is a proposal that is going through the municipal review process.

    BC Housing has a range of programs to provide housing assistance. This includes various subsidized housing options as well as rent supplements in which part of an individual’s rent is paid for by BC Housing. You can view this site to search housing listings in a specific area: https://www.bchousing.org/housing-assistance/rental-housing/housing-listings or use the Program Finder to learn which programs you may be eligible for: https://programfinder.bchousing.org/programfinder/faces/start 

    Please phone the BC Housing Applicant Services at 1-800-257-7756 if you would like to discuss your options.

  • two questions: 1 - is there a plan to relocate any of the current shelters, injection site, and support services to this new location from downtown Prince George locations? 2 - What is the approximate count of how many citizens live in downtown shelters or on the streets of downtown.

    LM asked 11 months ago

    1. Northern Health is developing a plan for health services to ensure quality of health care services and to respond to the recommendations of the Downtown Health Services Review. We can confirm that the proposed location would deliver mental health, substance use, and primary care services for residents and the local community, through ground-floor health service space in each building.

    2. The 2018 Homeless Count identified 160 people experiencing homelessness in Prince George. 110 of these individuals were sheltered versus 50 unsheltered. This is not specific to the downtown area. To learn more about the 2018 Homeless Counts, visit www.bchousing.org/research-centre/housing-data/homeless-counts

  • Will ALL of the new units be wheelchair accessible? Many people are homeless because there is virtually no accessible housing in this community and addictions often occur because of despair. Anyone, with or without a disability, can use an accessible room, but people with disabilities can only use an accessible room.

    sarah asked 11 months ago

    BC Housing Design Guidelines require that between 5-12% of units in a housing project be designed for wheelchair accessibility, so that would mean 3-6 units would be accessible for both the proposed supportive and affordable rental housing buildings. In addition, common areas would be designed to allow universal access.

  • Do you have any housing available?

    Matthew asked about 1 year ago

    BC Housing has a range of programs to provide housing assistance. This includes various subsidized housing options as well as rent supplements in which part of an individual’s rent is paid for by BC Housing. You can view this site to search housing listings in a specific area: https://www.bchousing.org/housing-assistance/rental-housing/housing-listings(External link) 

    Or use the Program Finder to learn which programs you may be eligible for: https://programfinder.bchousing.org/programfinder/faces/start(External link) 

    Please phone the BC Housing Applicant Services at 1-800-257-7756 if you would like to discuss your options.

  • Is there any actions that regular citizens could take to help the project go forward?

    Erin asked about 1 year ago

    Hi there – thank you for your support of this proposal. You can send an email of support to communityrelations@bchousing.org.

    We don’t currently have any community hearing dates planned but when we do, we’d love to see you there!

  • With all the property the city owns why is it necessary to spend taxpayer dollars on this piece of property?

    Maggie asked about 1 year ago

    A downtown Prince George location was recommended in Northern Health’s 2017 downtown health services plan.(External link)

    The owners of NR Motors have purchased another site for the business and are interested in moving from their current location. This provided an opportunity for the City to acquire a large site in the vicinity of downtown that meets the needs of BC Housing and Northern Health, while providing space for future development.

    When considering locations for supportive and affordable rental housing, BC Housing looks for proximity to community services (commercial and recreational activities); reasonably close to transit; adequate lot size; connections to utilities; compatible land use policies. The goal is to successfully integrate this new housing into the community. Health services are a community-based care service. This model is safe and helps people remain integrated in their communities.

  • I can't recall NR Motors advertising for sale, how did purchasing that property come about?

    Maggie asked about 1 year ago

    This property has not been purchased. The City has an accepted offer to purchase the property, subject to rezoning, environmental and geotechnical review, and project approval.