Union: Sustainable Development Co-operative

[dtkmelissa]

A new co-op has been formed with the goal of providing affordable residential and commercial space in the region. Unlike the usual housing co-op (such as, say, Bread and Roses), the co-op members are not necessarily residents. Instead, there are community stakeholder members as well as tenant member.

https://www.unionsd.coop/

The community members fund the operation of the co-op through the membership fees ($500 one-time fee) and the (optional) purchase of preference shares for individual buildings. A member would be able to purchase from $100 to $10,000 of preference shares for a building. 


The intent is to purchase mixed-use buildings with residential and retail components, to create engaging spaces, and to work with other local organizations to provide affordable housing. The partner organization Union has selected for the first building is Reception House, which provides housing for government-supported refugees.

Some coverage in the Record here: https://communityedition.ca/new-kw-co-op...in-canada/

https://www.therecord.com/news-story/927...te-market/

While I do like the All in for 2020 initiative to reduce homelessness, I am more excited by this project as it is intent on taking concrete actions to provide affordable housing.

I'm quite excited about this initiative as well. It feels like it could start to make a difference in the short-term, without waiting for the slow process of government policies to be updated and improved to address some of these issues.

One point of clarification though, shares are available from $1000-$10000 per property purchased (The above post says $100 I believe).