A new Lil’wat Nation mixed-use development on Highway 99 in Mount Currie aims to help address the challenging housing situation in the region.
Located at the intersection of Highway 99 and Pemberton Portage Road across from St. Christopher’s Parish, the Lil’wat Main Street Development, as it’s called, is a proposed mixed-use commercial and residential development consisting of 53 housing units and six commercial spaces in two separate buildings. Thirty-six of the housing units will be non-market subsidized housing, provided by BC Housing, with the remainder being affordable market rental housing.
The units will be a mixture of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units. The project will be able to house between 100 and 120 people.
“There is a shortage of units [in Lil’wat Nation] which is one of the key things, and having different sizes of units available for single people or small families and things like that is an important part of the development,” said Lil’wat Chief Dean Nelson.
The new development, now headed for third reading at the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD), is designed to be a village centre of sorts. It will include general commercial uses, a small park with a playground, a community garden for residents and 110 parking stalls for commercial and residential users.
The development is also planned to make the Highway 99 intersection and Mount Currie village area more pedestrian-friendly. The plans call for turning the existing three-way intersection into a four-way intersection with new sidewalks that will connect to existing commercial facilities and the T’szil Learning Centre.
The development’s six commercial shops could include a range of commercial ventures that are needed in the community.
“We were thinking of all different types of things like possibly a bank, or maybe doctor-type things and coffee shops,” said Nelson.
“The big thing is that we had to purchase the lands to make sure that they’re not developed by someone else, where we would like to develop. So we saw this as really important, to secure those lands.”
The land is also important to the Nation from a historical perspective, Nelson said, adding that there is “a lot of history” that needs to be researched.
“So it is a very valuable piece of property for us, like all lands are ... as far as a business centre, it fits in with the gas station there and with T’szil Learning Centre. It’s like a core of the nation, but it’s mainly a business opportunity for us to build on,” he said.
A zoning amendment bylaw and related Official Community Plan amendment bylaw for the project passed second reading at the April 21 SLRD board meeting, followed by a public hearing held on May 17.
While the housing development is focused on tackling the challenging housing situation faced by members of Lil’wat and the wider St’át’y’emc Nation, the broader community could also potentially be able to use some of the housing.
“What we’ve articulated to BC Housing and what would be eligible under the Indigenous Housing Fund would be that it will be a tiered selection process. Lil’wat Nation members will have priority, St’át’y’emc members are second and the broader community third,” said Lil’wat director of infrastructure, housing and public works Tom Laviolette in a presentation to the SLRD.
Find more info at slrd.bc.ca.
