By Chad Klassen

Preparations underway to build modular units on West Victoria Street

Mar 6, 2019 | 4:32 PM

KAMLOOPS — Fencing is up at the parking lot between Emerald Centre and Budget Brake & Muffler on West Victoria Street, where 46 modular units will be ready at the end of the summer, nearly a year after they were first scheduled to finished. 

“There’s always construction delays. We totally understand that,” said executive director of CMHA Kamloops Christa Mullaly. “There’s other logistics and legal and all sorts of things that come along with any housing project, especially when you’re trying to fit a project into a pretty tight area.”

Horizon North is bringing in equipment to thaw the ground over the next two weeks to prepare it for foundation work that is set to begin on March 20 before modular units are craned in April 17. 

The units were supposed to be done by now – scheduled to be ready in November – but due to slope stability issues, BC Housing had to push the project back. 

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“We had designed a retaining wall, and upon review the retaining wall, it was determined we felt we needed to upgrade that,” said BC Housing’s director of regional development Danna Locke. “So we did some additional analysis of that with our geotechnical engineers and there was some cost implications, so then we decided to take a portion of the building back. We’re reducing the unit count by about six.”

It’s been more than a year since the B.C. government announced plans to construct more than 100 modular units in Kamloops with a development on the South Shore and one on the North Shore. The modular units on Tranquille Road are nearing completion and expected to be ready by the end of the month. 

The project on West Victoria Street is now scheduled to be done in August , although BC Housing is cautiously predicting residents will move into their units in early fall.

Crews with Horizon North will be working every day to speed up completion. 

“We have a committment from Horizon North that they’re going to be on site seven days a week, getting this project off the ground, and really excited for later in April when our modulars will be craned in over a period of nine days,” noted Mullaly.

Mullaly says the location, next door to the Emerald Centre shelter, is ideal for working with CMHA’s existing clients who are also looking for permanent shelter. 

“We have a few apartments that are attached to Emerald Centre that are always full and always waitlisted,” said Mullaly, speaking to the desperate need for the modular units. “So we’re really excited to bring this additional housing stock, supported housing stock, to a population that we work with 24/7.”