Affordable housing and food security

When I go to the grocery store these days, I am really feeling the pinch. I’m glad I planted a big garden this year! I know that I’m not alone in noticing how expensive my grocery bill is. The cost of groceries is increasing rapidly, putting many more families at risk of experiencing household food insecurity.  

It’s not just food prices that are skyrocketing – housing affordability is also in a major crisis in Kamloops. Kamloops’s population is quickly outpacing its housing supply, and families are being priced out of the market. According to Zumper.com, the average cost of new studio and one bedroom apartments in Kamloops more than doubled between 2016 and 2023, with average rents now at $1600/mo and $1750/mo, respectively. Our population is growing more quickly than projected, and our inventory and community vacancy rates are at critically low levels. We know we are in desperate need of more housing supply.

There is a clear link between household food insecurity and the high cost of housing. One of our core organizational values at the KFPC is “Alleviation of Poverty” because we understand that we will not be able to meaningfully address household food insecurity without also addressing the conditions of poverty more broadly. 

Last fall, the KFPC published a series of municipal policy recommendations called Food and the City, including one recommendation to build more cooperative housing to increase the affordability of housing. Cooperative housing is widely recognized as an important category of affordable housing, yet in recent years Kamloops has had no organization working toward building this type of housing. But we’ve heard the buzz that a new organization in Kamloops is stepping forward to lead this solution! 

Propolis Cooperative Housing Society is a non-profit housing cooperative, with a goal to create affordable, durable, and green homes that will enrich the vibrant neighbourhoods in the heart of Kamloops.

Propolis recently announced that they are in the planning stages for their first building project: a six-storey mixed-use development, located at the corner of Aspen and Tranquille, which will provide 50 affordable residential housing units. It will have commercial space for a daycare and a theatre on the ground floor, and it will even have rooftop gardens!

Propolis has taken an innovative approach to funding the purchase of the land for this project. They are raising capital through a community bond campaign, so that everyone in the community can contribute to developing affordable housing, while earning returns. It is a unique and inclusive opportunity for all residents to play an active role in addressing the housing challenges we all face. Investment minimums are as low as $1,000 and investors will earn up to 3.5% interest annually while supporting a vibrant future for Kamloops.

If we want to improve food security in our community, we need to make progress on the affordability of our housing too. The KFPC is looking forward to working in partnership with Propolis to build a community where nobody falls through the cracks. 

If you want to learn more about Propolis, their housing project, and how you can invest in a Propolis Bond, you can check out their website at https://www.propoliscooperative.com/bond-campaign.