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The Shishalh First Nation on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast has completed an innovative housing project by rescuing and relocating existing homes instead of demolishing them. The Nation, working with Renewal Development and Wesgroup Properties, has delivered 17 below-market rental homes. Initially there were 10 homes but after they were barged up to the coast additional units were created. Now they are “new” homes for nation members who had been on a waitlist for rental housing.
By reusing high-quality homes instead of building new, the project:
Delivered housing 20 to 40 percent more affordably than conventional construction;
Diverted about one million kilograms of material from landfill;
Reduced long-term greenhouse gas emissions by 230,000 kilograms.
The project was also built with a strong Indigenous workforce. Roughly 70 percent of the trades were Shishalh Nation members, creating local jobs, skills, and long-term economic capacity.