City approves sale of 5 sites to non-profits for 387 affordable homes in Calgary

The city expects nearly 400 affordable homes to be built in Calgary through the sale of five land parcels that it announced Thursday.

Four non-profit housing providers were unveiled as the successful applicants for five sites in the latest round of Calgary's non-market housing land sale program. The city selects housing providers to purchase city-owned land at below-market prices, with successful applicants then given a four-year window to construct the units.

The city said on Thursday it expects the newly announced sales will lead to 387 new affordable homes.

Onward Homes, a non-profit specializing in providing housing to low-income Calgarians, purchased land at 1406 26th St. S.W. in Shaganappi and 108 Mission Rd. S.W. in Erlton. Liberty Housing Organization, another non-profit committed to creating affordable homes, purchased the parcel at 11 Haddon Road S.W. in Haysboro.

This round of the non-market land sale is the first to give priority in an earlier application period to Indigenous organizations. As a result, two Indigenous groups were successful in purchasing land, with Siksika Off-Reserve Affordable Housing buying a parcel at 299 Erin Woods Dr. S.E. in Erin Woods, and the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary buying the parcel at 320 15th Ave. N.E. in Crescent Heights.

Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek announced the successful applicants on Thursday, saying this will allow close to 400 families to have a place to call home. The proceeds of the sale, she added, will go back into city efforts to generate more housing.

Specifically, she cited the tremendous need in Calgary to provide affordable housing for Indigenous people in the city.

"Indigenous partner organizations and our neighbouring nations have told us that we must step up and do better, and offer housing that is sensitive to the needs of Indigenous people who live in our city who are currently struggling either with inadequate housing or no housing at all," Gondek said.

The program is part of the city's housing strategy, and the most recent round of sales is the fourth portfolio of city-owned sites offered through the program.

The land parcels are sold below market value to give non-profits an opportunity to develop affordable housing at a discounted rate. The city said it has contributed $25.3 million in land value through the program, enabling 835 homes to be built, including the homes announced on Thursday.

Each land parcel comes with per-door funding of $75,000, resulting in a $29-million contribution from the Housing Accelerator Fund to help non-profit affordable housing providers build more quickly.

Siksika Off-Reserve Affordable Housing general manager Max Lloyd said his organization plans to build approximately 60 units on its land in Erin Woods, as well as a community garden and cultural amenity area.

"We have been looking for opportunities to construct more affordable housing for nation members," Lloyd said. "When this opportunity came up, we certainly seized upon it in order to put our proposal forward."

Shane Gauthier, the Aboriginal Friendship Centre of Calgary's CEO, said the organization plans to build nine townhouses on the land, as well as a playground for children.

The new housing would complement the centre's Elders' Lodge, which opened in 2023 to offer affordable housing for Indigenous seniors in Calgary. Noting that many of the centre's members have trouble finding a place to live, and sometimes are barred from renting a home because they're Indigenous, Gauthier said the housing would respond to a need for culturally safe housing.

"When you look at Calgary's most vulnerable, a high proportion of them are Indigenous," Gauthier said. "So it makes sense to me to focus on supporting that population, there's a definite need for it."