Osoyoos Town Council reviewed a conceptual drawing of the proposed major subdivision. The town-owned Southeast Meadowlark area, which includes the area called the Richter Property, is where the town’s new fire hall will be built in 2015. The town is soliciting the private sector for expressions of interest to build an initial 40 residential units. The subdivision will eventually have 300 residential units.
The newly-elected Town of Osoyoos council was informed Monday that seeking out a developer to construct one of the largest subdivisions ever built in Osoyoos remains a top priority early in the new year.
Alain Cunningham, the town’s director of planning and development services, updated new Mayor Sue McKortoff and councillors Carol Youngberg, Jim King, Mike Campol and incumbent C. J. Rhodes about the town-owned Southeast Meadowlark area, which includes the area called the Richter Property, where the town’s new fire hall will be built in 2015.
“The Town of Osoyoos is soliciting competitive Expressions of Interest (EOI) from the private sector to purchase and develop the town-owned Richter Property (3.23 acres), with about 40 mixed housing units,” said Cunningham. “The property is located on the west side of the Osoyoos urban area with ready access to our downtown.
“This is an exciting opportunity to get in at the ground floor of a beautiful, planned neighbourhood in our SE Meadowlark area, which would eventually build out to about 300 housing units.”
The proposed plan for the SE Meadowlark development will be a variety of housing offerings for young families with children through to seniors and “everyone in between, including some fully integrated affordable housing for younger working households.”
A diverse and attractive mix of housing will be offered including innovative small lot single-family homes with optional laneway carriage homes, small lot two-family homes, row housing with rear or shared parking, fourplexes and low-rise apartment blocks, he said.
“Careful design controls will ensure the whole area is a showpiece for urban design excellence, including attractive buildings on a Santa Fe theme reflecting our semi-desert ambiance, as well as full municipal services, convenient footpaths and pathways and access to a central pond,” said Cunningham.
While there haven’t been any formal expressions of interest by developers willing to tackle the entire project, there has been plenty of interest from local homebuilding contractors to construct the actual homes, said Cunningham.
Much of the past year has been spent formalizing the contract the developer would have to sign with the town in order to win the contract and he remains confident a well-respected developer will show interest early in 2015, he said.
He has been provided a list of six reputable developers who might be interested in a large project of this size and he will be contacting management from these companies in the next few weeks, said Cunningham.
The selected developer would have to commit to:
• Purchasing the subject property from the town at fair market value.
• Build out the property with about 40 units of low-rise mixed housing types at a medium density on the Richter Property.
• Sign a housing agreement setting aside 15 per cent of units at near-market affordable housing, including a negotiated package of financial incentives.
• Achieve urban design excellence by applying the town’s desired “form-based” zoning approach.
• Retain a qualified architect early in the process and collaborate with the town in an integrative development/design/planning team approach to promote both good design and project financial viability.
• Enter a servicing agreement for required infrastructure designed by the town’s engineering consultants and constructed under their supervision.
• Complete all development on the Richter Property within a three-year target.
The subject property is located on the west side of the town near the intersection of 74th Avenue and Highway 97 and immediately south of the new fire hall, which is expected to begin construction in the late spring or early summer of 2015.
The property is currently designed in the town’s Official Community Plan(OCP) and zoned for agriculture, however, the provincial Agricultural Land Commission has agreed in principle to its release for development if numerous conditions are met, said Cunningham.
Any developer would have to sign a deal with the town to pay for capital costs for connecting a north-south road through the property, lanes and sidewalks, onsite water and sewer services and utility connections, all according to the town’s engineering consultant’s designs and construction supervision, as well as appropriate landscaping and street furniture, said Cunningham.
The SE Meadowlark Plan would include the development of more than 250 mixed housing units spread over 40 acres. The development was approved by council in 2010.
There is a serious need for affordable housing in Osoyoos and the town has experienced a large influx of retirees and second-home buyers that have inflated local house prices, he said.
“Although there has been some recent price moderations, an unwanted side effect of our success as a resort community has been to raise affordability barriers against persons, often younger in age, who may want to live and work in Osoyoos, but do not yet have the financial means to do so,” said Cunningham. “The creation of affordable housing will assist in Osoyoos becoming more sustainable by both enabling work force expansion and offsetting trends to an even more elderly population that we already have.”
The town also wants to capitalize on opportunities that will come with the opening on the South Okanagan Correctional Centre being built just north of Oliver in the fall of 2016, he said.
“We want to attract as many of their employees and families as we possible can,” he said.
The selected developer will be required to set aside 15 per cent of total residential units for near-market affordable housing which recipients can purchase at a 20 per cent discount on below market pricing, he said.
These units will be sold through a housing authority to targeted moderate-income families and preferably to younger age working households that need a financial break before becoming completely self-sustaining, he said.
The town realizes developers will demand financial incentives to build affordable housing units and the town is prepared to negotiate an adequate financial incentives package with the chosen developer, said Cunningham.
“At the end of successful negotiations, the developer will be required to sign a … housing agreement with the town laying out the respective rights and obligations of both parties.”
All submissions by developers will be ranked on submission requirements and shortlisted candidates will be invited to submit references and participate in interview meetings.
The selected developer will be invited to start the process by preparing a detailed analysis of development costs and returns in preparation for negotiating an affordable housing incentives package, he said.
If these negotiations don’t reach a successful conclusion for both parties, the town will then approach the next highest ranked bidder and council will ultimately approve the final selection of the appropriate developer.
Considering the size and scope of this development and large amount of money involved, Cunningham told council he’s convinced a large developer will be interested in meeting all conditions laid out by the town.
“We need to get going on this early in the new year,” he said.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
