Five-fold hike to repair bill at BC Housing apartment in Kamloops
A vacant BC Housing apartment in Kamloops is still awaiting repair work more than three years after a fire ousted its residents. BC Housing now estimates repairs will cost $2.7 million for the building it bought for $12.8 million last spring, up from the planned $500,000 renovation....
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A vacant BC Housing apartment in Kamloops is still awaiting repair work more than three years after a fire ousted its residents.
BC Housing now estimates repairs will cost $2.7 million for the building it bought for $12.8 million last spring, up from the planned $500,000 renovation.
The Crown agency is planning to award the contract directly to Nelson-based company North Mountain Construction because "urgent completion of this project is required to meet the housing emergency in Kamloops."
That's according to a notice posted for prospective contractors to a provincial government website. It also notes the building is damaged due to the initial delay in construction, warning that it may suffer even more damage if left longer.
When BC Housing announced the purchase in April 2023 it planned to open for residents by the fall, but renovations didn't start. The 435 Cherry Ave apartment building instead sat vacant over the winter and the upcoming repairs were made worse by a burst pipe.
https://infotel.ca/inhome/burst-pipe-floods-vacant-bc-housing-apartment-building-in-kamloops/it102709
A similar problem happened at the Fortune Motel that BC Housing bought in 2021. One of its two buildings would eventually be torn down before it opened as a supportive housing site.
It's not clear when the repairs to the 42-unit Cherry Avenue apartment building will be completed or when it is expected to open. It will house low and middle income families and individuals.
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