An initiative to provide seasonal housing for hospitality industry employees is shaping up, though not quite as quickly as initially hoped.
“Everything is coming together well,” said Daniel Bibby, executive director and general manager at Spirit Ridge. “We now have all accommodation modules on site and have a local construction crew completing the finishing work.”
The 49-room “camp” was transported in pieces from northern Alberta, where it was being used for oil workers.
The initiative was undertaken by the Osoyoos Employee Housing Society (OEHS), a non-profit organization representing some of the key players in the Osoyoos hospitality industry.
It is intended to address the serious shortage of suitable seasonal accommodation for workers, which has been an impediment to obtaining the necessary seasonal staff.
“The final stages of the project include the utility service connections and landscaping, which we hope to have completed within the next two weeks,” Bibby said in an email last Thursday.
The accommodation will be located on leased Osoyoos Indian Band land just west of the Nk’Mip Corner PetroCanada service station.
The OEHS had hoped to have the accommodation ready to use by mid-May, though Bibby acknowledged more than a month ago that the goal might be overly ambitious.
In addition to the challenge of obtaining the camp and moving it, the group required a legal agreement to create an exception to a restrictive covenant, which prohibited building on that land to protect it for future development. The camp is only a temporary structure.
OEHS also sought a reduction of hookup fees due to the temporary nature of the project and the need for this accommodation.
“We have had great support for this project from the Town of Osoyoos, the OIB and the community,” said Bibby. “The OEHS is very excited to be able to provide an affordable housing alternative to a good cross section of local businesses, intended to assist in the recruitment and retention of great employees in our community.”
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
