For decades, the corner of Cook and Yates was a familiar stretch of asphalt and car lots, most recently home to Harris Victoria Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram.
On Wednesday, shovels hit the ground at 1045 Yates St., marking the start of Phase 1 of Harris Green Village – a development years in the making that will bring more than 1,500 new rental homes to Victoria’s core.
The project, led by Toronto-based Starlight Developments, is the largest multi-family housing project in the city’s history.
When all three phases are complete, Harris Green Village will include 100,000 square feet of commercial, retail, and public space, along with a mix of townhomes, studios, and one- to three-bedroom apartments.
Phase 1 will include 526 units, with 80 classified as affordable under BC Housing’s criteria. The twin towers will rise 20 and 21 storeys.
Phases 2 and 3 are expected to add roughly 1,100 additional rental homes, including many family-sized two- and three-bedroom suites, and are projected for completion around 2028 in the 900-block of Yates Street. These buildings will feature three towers ranging from 28 to 32 storeys in height.
Projected rental rates for the 80 units deemed affordable in Phase 1 are $883 for a bachelor, $1,059 for a one-bedroom, and $1,767 for a three-bedroom, though these prices may change depending on household income.
Victoria Coun. Dave Thompson said the scale of the project is a significant step in addressing the city’s long-running housing shortage.
“We’ve got a severe housing shortage – a crisis-level housing shortage – and this is going to contribute over 1,500 homes,” Thompson told Victoria News. “Eighty of those will be directly affordable, and that’s a huge contribution in itself.”
Victoria’s vacancy rate, which hovered around one per cent for decades, has recently climbed to about two per cent. Thompson believes large projects like Harris Green Village could push that number toward a healthier four per cent, easing the strain on renters.
“I’m aiming for a 4 per cent balanced vacancy rate, where it’s neither a landlord’s market nor a renter’s market,” he said. “This will make a big contribution toward that.”
The city is currently about 8,000 homes short of meeting existing demand, according to Thompson, with roughly 1,000 new households forming in the region each year.
While Harris Green Village will help, it won’t close the gap alone.
“We need this project and we need a lot more projects like it,” Thompson said, pointing to other major builds such as the Chard project across the street. "It won't happen overnight, but this is a great step for Victoria."
The Downtown Victoria Business Association is also backing the development.
“We are excited to see the start of this major project in downtown,” said Jeff Bray, CEO of the DVBA. “Starlight is bringing much-needed rental housing into our core. This is the biggest single investment in purpose-built rental in Victoria and demonstrates the confidence investors have in downtown Victoria.”
For a corner of downtown once defined by parked cars, the next few years will bring cranes, concrete, and eventually, thousands of new neighbours.
