Building a Stronger Community Through Housing

We are committed to developing innovative solutions to address the pressing
need for year-round housing on Cortes Island.

Cortes Island Housing Society

Some statistics

The Problem

Cortest Island Housing Society
Cortes Island Housing Society

Unstable Housing

Every spring, many renters have to vacate their housing for the tourist season.

Cortes Island Housing Society

High Demand

There are not enough year-round rentals and owners are reluctant to rent.

Cortes Island Housing Society

Empty Homes

Approximately 240 homes are empty
for most of the year.

Cortes Island Housing Society

Living Conditions

30% of residents don’t have an indoor toilet, and 8% don’t have hot water.

People are struggling to remain on island
and the community we love is at risk. We only have a
few years to change direction before it’s too late.

Community Solutions

Our Projects

Rainbow Ridge

Rainbow Ridge

Building Housing at Rainbow Ridge Thanks to community input and financial contributions, the Cortes Housing Society has purchased 51 acres of flat, residentially-zoned land, within a five-minute walk of central Mansons Landing. We are working to develop multiple types...

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Cortes Community Land Trust

Cortes Community Land Trust

By purchasing existing homes, we avoid the high costs of developing raw land, and we ensure that existing housing on Cortes is used for year-round housing rather than purchased by off-islanders for part-time/summer use.

read more
MRDT For Affordable Housing

MRDT For Affordable Housing

In an effort to combat the lack of housing for residents, the regional district is now applying a 3% municipal and regional district tax (MRDT) on vacation rentals, with the money raised going toward affordable housing projects. This is the first time in Canada a tax...

read more
Shaping Land-Use on Cortes Island

Shaping Land-Use on Cortes Island

The Strathcona Regional District (SRD) is updating the zoning bylaws.  The Official Community Plan (OCP) was updated over 10 years ago. Typically, after an OCP is updated, the zoning bylaws are updated as well. We are about a decade behind in updating the zoning...

read more
Rainbow Ridge

Rainbow Ridge

Building Housing at Rainbow Ridge Thanks to community input and financial contributions, the Cortes Housing Society has purchased 51 acres of flat, residentially-zoned land, within a five-minute walk of central Mansons Landing. We are working to develop multiple types...

read more
Cortes Community Land Trust

Cortes Community Land Trust

By purchasing existing homes, we avoid the high costs of developing raw land, and we ensure that existing housing on Cortes is used for year-round housing rather than purchased by off-islanders for part-time/summer use.

read more
MRDT For Affordable Housing

MRDT For Affordable Housing

In an effort to combat the lack of housing for residents, the regional district is now applying a 3% municipal and regional district tax (MRDT) on vacation rentals, with the money raised going toward affordable housing projects. This is the first time in Canada a tax...

read more
Shaping Land-Use on Cortes Island

Shaping Land-Use on Cortes Island

The Strathcona Regional District (SRD) is updating the zoning bylaws.  The Official Community Plan (OCP) was updated over 10 years ago. Typically, after an OCP is updated, the zoning bylaws are updated as well. We are about a decade behind in updating the zoning...

read more

What’s Underway

Initiatives

Aquifer Project

We have recently received notice from the Real Estate Foundation of BC that we were awarded a grant of $50,000 to conduct an aquifer health assessment for Cortes. Through this project, we will be bringing on consultants that have done similar studies for rural island communities. We aim to map the aquifers on Cortes and assess their recharge rates as well as how much water is being withdrawn from them. Through this project, we aim to understand areas of the Island where aquifers need to be recharged, or water conserving development prioritized in the years ahead. Please let us know if you’d be interested in joining a committee with CHS to guide this work.

District Energy Project

The Cortes Housing Society has received a grant from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) for $93,000 to evaluate the feasibility of building a renewable energy heating and cooling system for the Rainbow Ridge housing project. In the next few months we will be exploring if a rural housing project like ours can be heated and cooled using a geoexchange system. We’ll be providing further updates in the months ahead.

Provide Affordable Home Ownership Opportunities

In addition to providing rental housing, we have heard strong interest from Cortes residents to have access to land for affordable home ownership opportunities. To support access to land, we are exploring developing access to land on Rainbow Ridge lands for affordable long term leases so people can build their own homes, or have one built for them without having to spend exorbitant amounts on gaining access to land.

Aquifer Project

We have recently received notice from the Real Estate Foundation of BC that we were awarded a grant of $50,000 to conduct an aquifer health assessment for Cortes. Through this project, we will be bringing on consultants that have done similar studies for rural island communities. We aim to map the aquifers on Cortes and assess their recharge rates as well as how much water is being withdrawn from them. Through this project, we aim to understand areas of the Island where aquifers need to be recharged, or water conserving development prioritized in the years ahead. Please let us know if you’d be interested in joining a committee with CHS to guide this work.

District Energy Project

The Cortes Housing Society has received a grant from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) for $93,000 to evaluate the feasibility of building a renewable energy heating and cooling system for the Rainbow Ridge housing project. In the next few months we will be exploring if a rural housing project like ours can be heated and cooled using a geoexchange system. We’ll be providing further updates in the months ahead.

Provide Affordable Home Ownership Opportunities

In addition to providing rental housing, we have heard strong interest from Cortes residents to have access to land for affordable home ownership opportunities. To support access to land, we are exploring developing access to land on Rainbow Ridge lands for affordable long term leases so people can build their own homes, or have one built for them without having to spend exorbitant amounts on gaining access to land.

Support Our Work!

Help us provide affordable housing solutions to our community.