The City of Kamloops says Arpa Investments has been chosen as the developer that will be tasked with building a six-storey, 90-unit market housing building at 377 Tranquille Road.
The new mixed use building at the site of the former Northbridge Hotel, will include a mix of studio, 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom units, as well as 7,600 square feet of ground floor commercial space.
In a news release, the City says the new building, which was added to the BC Builds Program in April, is the first transaction between the City and the newly formed Kamloops Community Land Trust.
“We are excited to be part of realizing last Council’s vision for this property and providing attainable housing for middle-income residents,” Kamloops Deputy Mayor for September Stephen Karpuk said.
“We share their commitment to the redevelopment of the Tranquille Corridor, to improving the safety of this area, and to facilitating more attainable market housing for our residents, and this project does it all.”
Speaking on the NL Noon Report, Joshua Knaak with Arpa Investments says construction is expected to begin in the next nine to 12 months, with the building set to be ready by the fall of 2026.
“It’ll be wood frame construction and very similar to what we’re actually doing across the street with Innova, which is currently under construction,” Knaak said. “Actually, also very similar to what’s being built on Campbell Avenue right behind it.”
Announced in February, the Province says the $3-billion BC Builds program is meant to fast-track the construction of affordable rental units on land owned by government, communities, and non-profits.
It also aims to create rental housing units where tenants pay no more than 30-per cent of their income in rent.
While the breakdown of units has not yet been determined, the City says 20 per cent of the 90 units – 18 in total – will be rented at 20 per cent below the market rent for a minimum of 35 years, as stipulated by BC Builds.
The proposal, which is subject to final review and funding approval by the Province, will also include 23 off-site parking stalls at 320 Tranquille Road, located diagonally across the street.
“It is obviously is a pretty compressed timeframe [to get to a shovel-ready state] but that is part of the BC Builds mandate,” Knaak said.
“The City has certainly indicated that its a high priority for them so they’ll be expediting he applications process. We will certainly be working with our professionals to ensure that they understand the urgency of this. The urgency is to get housing available.”
Both Arpa Investments and the City through the Kamloops Community Land Trust will retain ownership of the new building and be sole members of the strata. Knaak says Arpa will manage the commercial space while the city will run the residential portion.
“That way we’re not running two competing or two different rental projects out of the same building I guess,” Knaak said.
The City of Kamloops bought the Tranquille Road property for $7.1 million in October 2021, with plans to redevelop the site into market housing. Also included in that deal was the adjacent property at 346 Campbell Avenue, which BC Housing bought for $3.8 million.
Construction on The Confluence on the Campbell Avenue property – which will be operated by the ASK Wellness Society – got underway in June.