Kelowna – Ellis Place Supportive Housing

Consultation has concluded

Rendering of a 3-storey residential building

BC Housing, the City of Kelowna and Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna are working together to provide urgently needed homes with supports for people experiencing homelessness in Kelowna at 1055/1063 Ellis Street. This City-owned property is being leased to BC Housing for 10 years to build 38 modular units of housing, which will be operated by CMHA Kelowna. Ellis Place will be available to people over the age of 19 currently living in the community who have a history of or are at risk of homelessness and who need additional support services to maintain housing.

Recognizing our most vulnerable citizens face significant risk during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Province is expediting the plan to start construction at this site to ensure people in need have access to safe and secure housing. The current lease is for 10 years, and the property will go through the municipal rezoning process if the lease is extended beyond that.

Construction is underway and the building is expected to open in November 2020.

Housing with Support

Supportive housing is a self-contained studio home with supports provided on-site, to ensure people can achieve and maintain housing stability. Supports could include outreach workers, wellness checks, life skills training, employment assistance, connection and referral to community services and support groups. BC Housing and the housing operator will collaborate with local service providers on a thoughtful and thorough assessment process to ensure an appropriate mix of residents with the right supports live in the housing. Priority will be given to our vulnerable citizens who live in the Kelowna area. All residents would sign a program agreement and would pay rent.

BC Housing

BC Housing supports the city in its commitment to the Journey Home Strategy, focusing on ending chronic and episodic homelessness, introducing measures to prevent homelessness in the first place and implementing a co-ordinated systems approach to homelessness. We work in partnership with the private and non-profit sectors, provincial health authorities and ministries, other levels of government and community groups to develop a range of housing options. For Ellis Place, BC Housing is leading the design and construction of the housing, the resident selection and will provide operational funding to CMHA Kelowna.

City of Kelowna

Homelessness is an evolving, dynamic crisis in our community and these kinds of partnerships go a long way towards creating solutions. This strategic purchase will not only create much needed solutions in the short-term but also has long-term potential with a future land use designation for multi-story residential housing. The City of Kelowna purchased the 0.35 acres combined parcels in March for $1.8M as part of its proactive land acquisition strategy to secure key properties and leverage existing municipal land to further advance a broad range of community priorities. This strategic purchase will not only create much needed solutions in the short-term but also has long-term potential with a future land use designation for multi-story residential housing. This is a long-term land investment and in addition to being close to downtown, this property is ideally located adjacent to existing municipal park space with the potential to be used for many different civic objectives after expiry of the lease.

Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna

CMHA Kelowna, an experienced local service provider, will operate Ellis Place. Staff will be on-site 24/7 to facilitate connections to community health and support services, including life and employment skills training, health and wellness support services and opportunities for volunteer work.

Community Advisory Committee

CMHA Kelowna will be developing an Ellis Place Community Advisory Committee that will include representation from BC Housing, Interior Health, the City of Kelowna, RCMP, community organizations and community members at large. Please email ellis.place@cmha.bc.ca by October 5th if you would like to apply for a seat on this committee.

The Community Advisory Committee will:

  • Build and maintain positive relationships amongst the community, the building operators and the program partners;
  • Facilitate information sharing and dialogue;
  • Identify and resolve any issues, opportunities and concerns related to building operations.

Your feedback and comments are important to us

We welcome questions and comments below in the Q&A tool or by email to communityrelations@bchousing.org.


BC Housing, the City of Kelowna and Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna are working together to provide urgently needed homes with supports for people experiencing homelessness in Kelowna at 1055/1063 Ellis Street. This City-owned property is being leased to BC Housing for 10 years to build 38 modular units of housing, which will be operated by CMHA Kelowna. Ellis Place will be available to people over the age of 19 currently living in the community who have a history of or are at risk of homelessness and who need additional support services to maintain housing.

Recognizing our most vulnerable citizens face significant risk during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Province is expediting the plan to start construction at this site to ensure people in need have access to safe and secure housing. The current lease is for 10 years, and the property will go through the municipal rezoning process if the lease is extended beyond that.

Construction is underway and the building is expected to open in November 2020.

Housing with Support

Supportive housing is a self-contained studio home with supports provided on-site, to ensure people can achieve and maintain housing stability. Supports could include outreach workers, wellness checks, life skills training, employment assistance, connection and referral to community services and support groups. BC Housing and the housing operator will collaborate with local service providers on a thoughtful and thorough assessment process to ensure an appropriate mix of residents with the right supports live in the housing. Priority will be given to our vulnerable citizens who live in the Kelowna area. All residents would sign a program agreement and would pay rent.

BC Housing

BC Housing supports the city in its commitment to the Journey Home Strategy, focusing on ending chronic and episodic homelessness, introducing measures to prevent homelessness in the first place and implementing a co-ordinated systems approach to homelessness. We work in partnership with the private and non-profit sectors, provincial health authorities and ministries, other levels of government and community groups to develop a range of housing options. For Ellis Place, BC Housing is leading the design and construction of the housing, the resident selection and will provide operational funding to CMHA Kelowna.

City of Kelowna

Homelessness is an evolving, dynamic crisis in our community and these kinds of partnerships go a long way towards creating solutions. This strategic purchase will not only create much needed solutions in the short-term but also has long-term potential with a future land use designation for multi-story residential housing. The City of Kelowna purchased the 0.35 acres combined parcels in March for $1.8M as part of its proactive land acquisition strategy to secure key properties and leverage existing municipal land to further advance a broad range of community priorities. This strategic purchase will not only create much needed solutions in the short-term but also has long-term potential with a future land use designation for multi-story residential housing. This is a long-term land investment and in addition to being close to downtown, this property is ideally located adjacent to existing municipal park space with the potential to be used for many different civic objectives after expiry of the lease.

Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna

CMHA Kelowna, an experienced local service provider, will operate Ellis Place. Staff will be on-site 24/7 to facilitate connections to community health and support services, including life and employment skills training, health and wellness support services and opportunities for volunteer work.

Community Advisory Committee

CMHA Kelowna will be developing an Ellis Place Community Advisory Committee that will include representation from BC Housing, Interior Health, the City of Kelowna, RCMP, community organizations and community members at large. Please email ellis.place@cmha.bc.ca by October 5th if you would like to apply for a seat on this committee.

The Community Advisory Committee will:

  • Build and maintain positive relationships amongst the community, the building operators and the program partners;
  • Facilitate information sharing and dialogue;
  • Identify and resolve any issues, opportunities and concerns related to building operations.

Your feedback and comments are important to us

We welcome questions and comments below in the Q&A tool or by email to communityrelations@bchousing.org.


Consultation has concluded

  • Are there any pet friendly options in kelowna or West kelowna?

    M asked about 4 years ago

    All tenants are required to sign a program agreement. As part of this agreement, all pets must be registered and are subject to approval by the housing manager.

    BC Housing has a program participant pet ownership agreement which tenants must sign. This agreement sets out rules for the number of pets tenants can have. You can learn more here: https://www.bchousing.org/publications/Pet-Ownership-Rules.pdf

    BC Housing has a range of programs to provide housing assistance for residents of BC. 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  

    The Program Finder can be used to learn which programs you might be eligible for with pets: https://programfinder.bchousing.org/programfinder/faces/start        

    For more assistance with the housing application, please contact Applicant Services at 1-800-257-7756 (toll-free).

  • How can I get a place there?

    Clarence Guilbault asked about 4 years ago

    Thank you for your inquiry. BC Housing has a range of programs to provide housing assistance for residents of BC. 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 

    The Program Finder can be used to learn which programs you might be eligible for: https://programfinder.bchousing.org/programfinder/faces/start        

    For more assistance with the housing application, please contact Applicant Services at 1-800-257-7756 (toll-free).

     

  • How about the non street people who are low income and not on drugs? Wouldn't they best be served by help with housing as rent in Kelowna is so expensive? Better yet, how about restricting landlords from charging outrageous rents to begin with for responsible, low wage earners? The people on the street will not appreciate this housing, have mental issues and drug problems. A lot of them have been in and out of recovery for years without recovering. Put them in a mental institution with drug rehab. Not among everyday hardworking people. These people need instutionalization away from downtown. Guess they are allowed to shoot up as well. They will not appreciate anything you give them and will wreck the brand new building thus costing us even more money. Independant support should be given ONLY to the responsible low wage earners and responsible senior citizens who really deserve it and will appreciate it.

    B asked about 4 years ago

    There are a wide variety of housing needs across BC. BC Housing has a range of programs to provide housing assistance for residents of BC. 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.

    The Program Finder can be used to learn which programs are available for residents of BC with different needs: https://programfinder.bchousing.org/programfinder/faces/start

    There are many reasons why someone may be experiencing homelessness and not all people who are experiencing homelessness are addicted to drugs or dealing with mental health challenges.

    Supportive housing assists people who are experiencing homelessness and builds supports to allow tenants to work towards a more healthy and stable life. All residents in supportive housing have made a choice to work towards living a healthy, stable life. All residents sign a program agreement (similar to a tenancy agreement) and pay rent. 

    Supportive housing is based on the Housing First model – proven to help many people find and maintain stable homes, improve their quality of life, and reduce their use of health and social services in the long term. Supportive housing gives people access to the health and counselling services they need to address mental health and substance use challenges as well as housing, in order to more successfully break the cycle of homelessness. 

    BC Housing, service providers, and housing operators work together to ensure the needs of a resident are well matched to the types of support services provided. 

  • The site is being leased for 10 years - that is a very short time period. "The current lease is for 10 years, and the property will go through the municipal rezoning process if the lease is extended beyond that." What was the rationale for only a 10 year lease? Is BC Housing hoping that a re-zoning will meet less resistance after demonstrating its' success? I am worried about the future of the lot & building if a re-zoning is not approved in 10 years - what is the plan then?

    Lindsay asked over 4 years ago

    Thank you for your question. You are correct, the current lease is for 10 years. The City of Kelowna purchased the 0.35 acres combined parcels in March as part of its proactive land acquisition strategy to secure key properties and leverage existing municipal land to further advance a broad range of community priorities. 

     This strategic purchase will not only create much needed solutions in the short-term but also has long-term potential with a future land use designation for multi-story residential housing. This is a long-term land investment and in addition to being close to downtown, this property is ideally located adjacent to existing municipal park space with the potential to be used for many different civic objectives after expiry of the lease. At that time, the City of Kelowna and BC Housing will be able to assess the evolving housing needs of the community and respond accordingly.  

    The modular construction type and design have been specifically selected to allow us to de-construct the building and rebuild it at another location if required.  

  • How do I apply for this housing and with who

    ShaneWoW asked over 4 years ago

    This new development is still under construction and is not yet accepting applications. Applicants for all supportive housing buildings should apply through the supportive housing registry.  

    For more information about applying for housing, you can contact Applicant Services at 1-800-257-7756 (toll-free).

  • to get assists for rentals what is the most amount that can be given and what is the annual income for rent assists.

    imperial06 asked over 4 years ago

    Residents in supportive housing will apply and go through an assessment process, and must meet eligibility requirements including income. Residents will pay rent based on their income; this will be determined during a review of income and assets by the housing provider.

  • Hi just inquiring about if the new housing on Ellis is going to be pet friendly

    Natcha asked over 4 years ago

    The new supportive housing on Ellis street will be pet friendly. All pets will need to be registered with the operator, and residents must agree to follow the pet policy for the building.

  • My teenaged daughter who regularly uses Ellis Street to get downtown and to her friends, etc. and will have to pass by this new facility would like to know if there will be people allowed to hang out outside of the facility (on the sidewalk - either side of the street). She says she is not scared but she clearly has concerns that are valid.

    Ess Van M asked over 4 years ago

    The supportive housing on Ellis will be studio rental homes. Residents living in the housing will have access to a separate outdoor amenity space. Drop in services at supportive housing sites are not provided, nor is there any reason why people would be loitering outside.

    People who experience homelessness are as varied as any other neighbour. They may be seniors, people with disabilities, people who have employment but no housing, people who are working through mental health concerns and/or substance use. All residents in supportive housing have made a choice to work towards living a healthy, stable life.

  • On June 16th @ 2am I was woken from my sleep because a druggie was having a bad experience on Ellis Street (1054 Ellis St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 1Y9), just across from where this Supportive Housing unit will be built. The druggie was swearing & screaming at the top of his lungs and banging on industrial garbage cans. I called the non-emergency Police line asking them to attend. I stayed awake for 30 min watching this individual continue to yell and bang on the garbage cans - the police never arrived and eventually the druggie left. Tonight at 1:45 am I was woken again due to loud noises and discovered 3 Homeless people pulling everything out of an industrial garbage can at the same location (1054 Ellis St, Kelowna, BC V1Y 1Y9). I called the non-emergency police line to assist, however the 3 Homeless people left about 15 min later. BC Housing states that “It’s a balance between connecting people with social supports and enforcing the law when criminal activity happens, regardless of where or by whom.” What measures will this Supportive Housing unit provide to support and enforce the law should their patrons engage in criminal activity outside the doors of this Supportive Housing project?

    Brenda S asked over 4 years ago

    The safety of residents, staff and the surrounding community is a priority. BC Housing works closely with our partners to build a safe community both inside and outside the housing. There will be a Community Advisory Committee, which includes representation from the City of Kelowna, Interior Health, BC Housing, the community, and police to address concerns. If concerns or problems occur with specific individuals on the project property, the operator will work with the individual and police on solutions.

    The following security measures will be in place at the building:

    •    The building will be staffed with two or more employees 24/7;

    •    Standard security measures such as well-lit and fenced grounds, extensive camera monitoring, and a controlled entrance. 

    •    Staff will have emergency call buttons/walkie talkies;

    •    All guests will need to provide ID and be buzzed in by reception;

    CMHA Kelowna, an experienced local service provider, will operate 38 new self-contained studio homes. Staff will be on-site 24/7 to facilitate connections to community health and support services, including life and employment skills training, health and wellness support services and opportunities for volunteer work. 

    Supportive housing offers a variety of potential support services, and staff are well-trained to provide the right support to residents based on their individually assessed needs. Residents will have access to counselling, as well as health, mental health, and addiction recovery services through Interior Health. 

    Every potential resident will be considered on an individual basis to ensure that the housing and services provided by the program match the support services that they need. All residents will pay rent and sign a Program Agreement that sets out expectations to be a good neighbour and tenant. 

  • Would love to get into low income housing as the place I'm residing is up for sale and I'm on disability

    Deanna asked over 4 years ago

    The housing on Ellis Street will be supportive housing - housing with support services provided onsite, for people that are experiencing or at risk of homelessness, and need assistance in order to live independently. 

    BC Housing has a range of programs to provide housing assistance for residents of BC. 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       

    The Program Finder can be used to learn which programs you may be eligible for: https://programfinder.bchousing.org/programfinder/faces/start             

    For more information about applying for housing, you can contact Applicant Services at 1-800-257-7756 (toll-free).