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A new concept in housing–pocket housing–is providing affordable homes for people with low incomes and low social and work skills in Winnipeg. ND Lea, an employee-owned engineering, planning and project management firm joined forces with S.A.M. Properties Inc., a non-profit developer, to create a made-in-Winnipeg solution to affordable housing needs in the Spence and Centennial neighbourhoods.
The City of Winnipeg classifies the neighbourhoods as two of Winnipeg’s highest-needs communities.These inner-city neighbourhoods have a high proportion of single-person households, residents living in rental accommodations and households with incomes under $20,000.
An inventory of vacant lots showed that these neighbourhoods had several vacant and under-used residential properties. S.A.M. Properties studied the feasibility of developing some of these vacant lots with an affordable and innovative alternative to the substandard living conditions of inner-city rooming houses.
The Affordable Housing Solution
The developer secured an interest-free CMHC Proposal Development Funding (PDF) loan to study the feasibility of creating affordable housing on the vacant and underutilized properties. The developer and architects recommended building small apartment blocks–coined Pocket Housing–on the narrow residential lots. The Spence Neighbourhood Association and the Centennial Residents group played supportive roles in developing the plans for the Pocket Housing. The City of Winnipeg endorsed the idea and sold four lots to the developer for $1.
Each of the four, two-storey Pocket Housing buildings has eight self-contained suites. Each of the 32 Pocket Suites has an independent entrance, a private washroom and a kitchenette outfitted with pots and pans. All units are barrier- free and have a single bed, a built-in table and a chair.
Some of the ground floor units are fully accessible by wheelchair, this is great, says Tanya Hutchens. Most of the suites are about 19.5 m2 (210 sq. ft.): the wheelchair-accessible units are slightly larger. Monthly rent is $350. The small size of the units helped reduce construction costs. Each of the four buildings features energy-efficient design, which helps reduce operating costs. The Pocket Housing is in a central location, allowing residents to get to grocery stores and laundromats on foot. The developer is also the property manager for the buildings and provides residents with regular home visits for support.
According to the design team, the name “Pocket Housing” reflects the concept of the houses slipping into older neighbourhoods and into narrow, infill lots, like a hand slipping into a pocket.
CMHC and the Government of Manitoba contributed $980,000 to the project, through the Affordable Housing Initiative (AHI). The City of Winnipeg contributed $51,000 through the donation of the vacant lots (based on the assessed value of the property and associated demolition costs). More than $1 million in funding came from the Government of Canada, the Province of Manitoba and the City of Winnipeg through the Winnipeg Housing and Homelessness Initiative (WHHI).
To keep the rents affordable, the Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation provides assistance for 16 of the units to make up the difference between the approved market rent and the rent-geared- to-income paid by the tenant. S.A.M. Properties Inc. is monitoring the development to determine the feasibility of building more such developments.
