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British Columbia is in the grips of a housing affordability crisis decades in the making. The Province has an ambitious plan to tackle the crisis through the largest investment in housing affordability in B.C.’s history. Tasked with building tens of thousands of homes in hundreds of communities is BC Housing, the agency responsible for developing, managing, and administering a wide range of subsidized housing and homelessness services across the province. BC Housing doesn’t do this alone, they work with hundreds of partners. In this podcast, you’ll hear from those tackling the crisis head on.
Hello and welcome to Let's Talk Housing.
I'm your host, Sara Goldvine.
In today's episode, we explore a unique
housing development in Terrace
that brings different
generations together under one roof.
This project offers not just homes,
but a space where seniors
and youth can connect, share stories,
and build relationships.
Designed in collaboration
with youth and families,
on the ground floor will be Foundry
Terrace, offering integrated
health and wellness services
for young people ages 12 to 24.
And then above the Foundry will be 43
homes, affordable
for seniors with low to moderate incomes.
Joining us today to talk about
this exciting project are Steve Mathias,
Co-Executive Director of Foundry,
and Michael McFetridge,
Executive Director with Terrace
and District Community Services Society.
Before we get underway,
I'd like to acknowledge
that we're recording today's
episode on the unceded territories
and the Musqueam, Squamish
and Tsleil-Waututh
on Coast Salish lands,
as well as on the unceded territory
of the Tsimshian,
and specifically the Kitsumkalum Nation.
For transparency,
we're recording this episode
in November of 2024 and our conversation
reflects the priorities of that time.
Steve, Michael, welcome to Let's Talk Housing.
Michael, let's start with you.
Can you tell us a little bit more
about this exciting project
and what brought it to be?
Okay.
Well, we're a not for profit
charity in a rural community.
So when we make
strategic
decisions on how to make investments
on behalf of our community,
we have to make sure that we are
maximizing the value, the value
proposition on whatever investment
we're doing. For us, because we're a
social service provider
the value proposition is
how many people can we help?
And so if we're going to make,
a significant investment
in our community,
we want to make sure that we are ensuring
that as many people get the benefit
of our investment as possible.
And we were at the place in our planning
with Foundry Central
in establishing a permanent home
for Terrace Foundry site.
And in that process,
we came to realize that building
our own location
was probably the most prudent
and most effective thing to do.
And as soon as we came to that
determination, maximizing the opportunity
for this process,
at least from our end, came
in to, our, our machinations.
Right. So we then looked to
our municipalities.
They did a needs assessment
in 2014, 2015.
And that sounds like
it's a long time ago.
But at the time, it wasn't that long ago
when we were doing it,
we reached back and we looked to see
what the Terrace municipality found.
And obviously, seniors
and youth are the two largest
groups of people that were identified
in their needs assessment.
And so we tried to figure out a way to
use our resource
to bring benefit to both groups of people
with the primary focus on
bringing a Foundry Central permanent home.
That was the primary driver,
but the secondary was who else
can we help along the way?
So that's kind of how it happened for us.
Yeah, that's great Michael.
So Steve,
I'd love to bring you in here.
So we you know, obviously
Foundry operates,
centres right across the province.
And this is a pretty unique model.
What did
the Foundry see in
terms of the benefits here for community?
Thanks, Sara.
So Foundry is a provincial initiative.
It's a program
that is out of Providence Health Care,
which is a nonprofit society
that supports
various acute care settings,
like St. Paul's Hospital,
in downtown Vancouver, longstanding
history of working in the inner city.
And we had initiated back in 2015,
this idea of branded centres
that had all the services
that youth needed for their health
and social service needs.
And so, at the time,
in our second phase of expansion,
the Northern Health Authority
and the province had identified,
that Terrace was a really important
hub for us to deliver services
from, given its positioning
in central, west, north, BC.
And so when we began conversations
with Mike and the team at TDCSS,
we understood that
Foundry would be a really significant
social asset in the community and that
because of what is probably
a dearth of places
for young people to go,
it was really important that we create,
something special and something that
really marked a
a new direction, I think, for services
for young people in the city.
And so when we started that conversation,
with, Mike and the team in Terrace,
it was really clear
that going beyond an initial 23
or 2400 square foot
space was really critical,
because it would provide opportunities,
for increased programing
and increased wellness
and recreational programing specifically,
and also give, the young people
a place where they could come
after school hours,
to do more than just accessing
a health service, but actually access
social service as well.
So that was the opportunity that we saw.
And it was wonderful
that BC Housing came alongside
with funding to really create, I think,
what is a fairly unique
initiative in the province.
I hope our listeners understand what this
space is going to be like.
I mean, you've got right now,
you have an interim site.
What types of services
are you offering to youth,
Steve, out of that site?
And how do you think that'll change once
you have access to the
to the permanent purpose built location?
Well, what I can say is that,
Foundry centres are meant to provide,
most of the services
that a young person would need.
So mental
health and substance use, primary care,
sexual health or reproductive health
services, and then social services
such as employment,
some work in education, as well
as paid positions
for young people to work as peers.
And so that is the full model,
that is the full model.
And that's what we are able to do in
spaces that are typically 6 to 8000 square feet.
Terrace has a smaller space right now
because it's roughly,
I think, Mike, about 2300 square feet,
if I recall.
But maybe, Mike, you can talk about
what the services
are currently being offered.
Well, we're a full fidelity site, Steve.
I mean, we've been that's
one of the great things that I think
that our teams together have managed to
pull off is with a much smaller site.
It's an interim site.
It's about,
I think, about 3000, 3500 square feet altogether.
Since we've opened,
we've been a full fidelity
site, meaning that we have
all of the service streams
and the integration required
for the full Foundry model.
And we have just seen the benefits
right away.
I mean, since we've opened our doors,
we opened in the middle of the pandemic.
I mean, that's something
that we need to acknowledge and
and ever since we opened our door
the first time, our centre
has been full and vibrant and accessed
across all the service streams.
Right? And it's provided a very safe,
unique place in
our community for youth to go
for, for any number of things.
I mean, it's not just a destination
because you have a problem, right?
And I think that's a real,
a key thing to note here
is that when a Foundry site
is firing on full pistons, it's
a very holistic environment.
And, having youth come in
for any number of reasons, even social
even just a plain social connection
with someone that they feel safe with,
that they feel connected with,
and that they can have
that basic connection
with someone in a safe environment. And,
on top of it, you've got everything else
that a youth might need
in order to make good decisions
for themselves to develop
self-determination and autonomy.
We've seen our program in Terrace produce
that outcome for
for the many, many, many of the youth
that have frequented our doorstep.
Right?
And so that's been our experience
so far and what the new site
is going to look like and provide for
our programing is
significantly more capacity.
We are challenged
with the type of space that we have
and the amount of space that we have.
And with this new space,
it's been intentionally designed,
through collaboration from the youth
and the professional set of workers
that will come in and use the system.
They had a wonderful time
of coming together
and expressing their mutual needs.
And so the design of the
the centre itself is very innovative
that way
in that there's everything there
professionally set out
in the correct fashion
that professionals
from the number of different service
streams can expect.
And so it's very useful for them.
But at the same time,
at a very primary level,
youth have said this is what we need,
and this is how it would be great
if it can be structured for us.
And that's incorporated as well.
So I'm really looking forward
to seeing how that jams out.
Right.
I think that's going to be,
a wonderful progression for Terrace
in particular, is that we've kind of gone
from a very functional,
useful environment
to a much more capable space
where enhanced programing and connections
with our community can take place.
Yeah. So, I mean,
you've got an amazing suite of services
that are going to be able
to be delivered in this new site,
Michael. But,
you could have paired with any number
of different organizations,
and specifically you're
bringing in a partnership with housing
and providing housing,
not to youth, but to seniors.
Can you tell us more about why,
why you think it's important to
to pair
the services in community within
a building that offers
housing and housing for seniors?
Well, Sara, I'm going
to preface my response with saying I'm
going to be careful with this answer,
but I think this is a natural extension.
And I'm really hopeful that BC Housing,
now that they've had some experience
in working with other,
I want to use the term public body,
but let's just
without with another organization
with a different kind of mandate. I'm
hoping that there's been a wonderful
connection of like-minded people,
at higher level.
I know that Foundry has definitely seen,
the partnership
potential with BC Housing.
And I'm really hoping, as an outsider, as,
as the recipient
of the beneficence of public bodies,
I really hope that BC Housing
sees the synergy
and the effectiveness of pairing and
and partnering with organizations
like Foundry Central
and not for profits in the community
and how it can provide
opportunities like this
that aren't necessarily boilerplate
or cookie cutter
templates that they may have
previously been used to using in
how they go about and provide
services for British Columbians.
Steve, I’d love your thoughts on this too.
I mean, out of all of the models,
what benefits do
you see and does Foundry
see with partnering services
for youth, with housing for seniors.
Why is that important?
I think it's important for
for a multitude of reasons.
One, we know with Foundry,
we're looking for permanent homes
that are really intended to become
social assets and social amenities.
And sometimes that can be a challenge
when you're
dealing with landlords and you're dealing
with potentially short lease options.
It seems like every building in
BC is scheduled for demolition
at some point in the next 5 to 10 years.
So it's not always easy
to, to find, a long term partner.
And we also know that this is,
the Foundry model is something
that government,
the province is committed to,
for more than just this generation.
So finding permanent homes, ones
that really are designed
with young people in mind, are critical
and ideal.
So when an opportunity
like this comes along
and we're looking at the possibility
of being on the ground floor
of a housing site,
the housing site is going to be important
as a place to draw
folks to, as we've alluded to.
But it will also be important
for young people to feel welcome there.
And there are certain combinations
of housing
that we feel are really conducive
to young people feeling welcome.
And I think that, having seniors housing,
where young people are
not likely to have conflict
with people in the housing,
and are likely to be able
to interact
in a way that is intergenerational
and is respectful,
I think is really important.
And potentially creates opportunities
that right now we don't have in
communities. We haven't necessarily seen
in the last couple of generations,
young people having time with,
seniors or elders in their community.
And as we know,
and what we're seeing now, obviously,
as we decolonize health care,
as we really see
the reemergence of Indigenous culture
as well as in Western culture, is that
that relationship is really important.
It's one that I think, as,
to colonial organizations,
or settler organizations,
I should say, we have a responsibility
to try to foster the opportunity
for young people to interact
with, with seniors in their community
and to see what that looks like.
We certainly know that, seniors
tend to get up a lot earlier,
in the day than young people.
So there may be opportunities
for shared amenity space.
But there may also be opportunities
for mentorship moments that we're hoping
we can create.
In the years ahead.
So I think that's what we saw
as an opportunity.
We've seen another project in Squamish,
where,
the, bottom floor is Foundry Squamish,
or Foundry Sea to Sky
and the other levels
is low income housing.
And that seems to be working well.
So family, family housing
and that seems to be working
well, also, so we're curious
to see what this model looks like.
When it rolls out.
Yeah.
I mean, there's
some beautiful opportunities there
for youth to feel
really connected to a broader community
and to be able to learn from and
connect with elders directly on site
as part of an integrated community.
Michael, for our audience,
can you talk to us a little bit
about the importance of that connection,
the intergenerational connection
specifically for Terrace?
I think maybe some of our listeners
wouldn't know a lot about Terrace
and specifically,
the importance of Terrace
as a hub in, northwest BC.
So Terrace is obviously located
in northwest BC.
We're on the western end of Highway 16,
about an hour
and a half east of Prince Rupert.
So we're about an an hour and a bit
from the coast to the hardcore coast,
Prince Rupert.
We're also about 40 minutes
northish of Kitimat,
which is on the ocean as well.
And we're about, about an hour
and a bit outside of the Hazeltons.
So Terrace sits in a very geographically
central location for this
part of the world.
And this part of the world is very old,
right?
The civilizations here
have been here for 30,000 years.
And so this is the meeting
place of the Gitxsan,
of the Tsimshian, of the Nisga'a
of the Haisla.
There's so many nations that,
use this area together.
Now, this is,
traditional and unceded
territory of the Tsimshian people.
And so we predominantly, as a community
members, engage with the Tsimshian.
But as a regional area, it's
it's quite a union place.
And you can track that for BC
as a whole, everything that comes out
of Rupert has to come through Terrace.
And so our community is fortunate
that it's multicultural
in many ways.
It might not appear that way on
from a certain perspective,
but from another perspective,
it's quite cosmopolitan.
And so bringing
these two populations together
in an intentional way is not,
I think all that innovative.
I wish, I wish I could go,
but I mean, there's evidence and studies
that have been tracking
this process for over 40 or 50 years.
Harvard, Stanford, even Simon Fraser has
has an intergenerational,
longitudinal study
that shows quite clearly
that when these two populations
are brought together intentionally and,
in a manner that they both feel safe,
all of the outcomes,
nearly all of the outcomes for either
population are higher.
Right.
And so what that means for us
is making sure
that each population is safe
and population, each group of people
feel safe and secure
and have their space.
And that if people don't want to engage
with each other, they don't need to.
That's not forced upon them.
There's no forced inclusion.
However,
there will invariably be groups of people
from either of these groups
that want to connect,
and it will be our job
to make sure that we find an intentional,
safe way for the wisdom and the
the benefits, those enormous
benefits
of having people who have experienced
the vicissitudes of life
and have been able to get through it,
share how they do that with people
who are just starting out on the journey,
and for them to feel value
from each other.
Right.
And so that's our intention.
That's our goal.
That's how it happened here in that
we have some real strong need,
for seniors housing in our community,
our co-op has a ten year waiting list.
And so it's implausible.
Right. It's at an impasse.
And again, our community hasn't shone,
for, I would say, a broad spectrum,
inclusive
youth program outreach support system
in a long time
and TDCSS had one going on the Terrace
Youth Strategic Initiative.
We called it TYES,
and we had that running for about eight,
nine years before we were fortunate
enough to get involved with Foundry,
and that was it.
So we've known for some time that,
youth services, senior services,
there was real need
in each of these areas. And,
bringing them together in this manner
is based on evidence, based on need.
And I know that the benefits,
the outcomes, will be better
and higher for each group.
And and so we're committed, right? TDCSS
as a community led organization,
this is why we're here.
So we're in
and that's why we've made the investment
to bring such,
a community asset to our city.
To put this all in context, there’s,
what, 35 Foundry spaces,
across BC, you mentioned one other site
that is partnered with housing.
Can you talk just a little bit about,
from the Foundry's perspective,
how does this project play into the
to the broader vision
for the Foundry across BC?
And you know, what do you see as
the future, considering
this project is part of the mix.
So thank you, Sara.
So right now
we have 17 centres open, and we're
working with another 18 communities
to identify spaces
for their Foundry centres
so that we can open,
35 by, 2027 2028.
So what we are really
curious about in this second
partnership is
what opportunities in the future
may there be
with other similar
buildings or other similar initiatives
and whether or not because
we're looking for spaces in,
larger urban centres
and more rural communities.
Yeah. That's fantastic.
Michael, I'd like to wrap
by asking you to look ahead.
Right.
So just outside of your window,
or maybe it's outside of your door.
You've got a building under construction
right now.
Of course, this place is not open yet.
So if you look ahead to
when that building is opened,
which right now is looking
like some point in 2026,
what do you think
that's going to mean for community?
Can you describe what you think
it will look like for you
to be walking in
and for community members to be walking
in the doors of that building in 2026?
Sara.
It's right in the centre of town, right?
I mean, this is one of the things
that we knew would make it special
is that this resource, this community
resources in the centre of our community.
Neither group has to go far.
They're not excluded.
They're not shunted out to some part of
the community where no one sees them
or where it's hard to get to.
This is as accessible
as Terrance can make it.
And so this is a legacy resource, right?
I mean, I bored Steve and his team.
Oh my goodness.
This is going to be such an incredible
long standing generations.
And that's what it's going to be.
I mean, the, the youth
who are using our services now
and whose lives are becoming
positively impacted
by all of the positive things
that happen at a Foundry, they very may
well end up living on top of that house.
That building, when it's their turn.
And to be able to give somebody
in your community
that kind of continuity of care,
continuity of belonging,
connection to the heart of
their community, that makes me feel good.
I can go to bed at night.
I mean, it's just it's
just such a significant win for Terrace
and the whole community
that’s behind it.
Our municipality, local
politicians and community leaders saw
how valuable
something like this would be.
And I know that in the years to come,
it will just continue to be a source
and a place of safety and
and positive energy,
for lack of a better term.
Sorry.
I wish I could make
it sound like super fantastic,
but in essence, that's what it is.
It's just this enormous,
incredible resource that will be able
to bring positive outcomes
for a whole spectrum of life cycle.
Right?
I mean, that's
just that's a positive thing.
It's not just for this part of your life,
for that part of your life,
or for people who are doing this.
It's for everybody.
And the more that we can incorporate
that into our wellness models,
holistic, integrated, connection.
I would love to see a Foundry
BC model for senior citizens/
And that's what I see.
This building, this asset is,
you know, that's
what we're hoping it's going to do,
is to show the way for our province
that we can do this and that this model
has applications everywhere.
Yeah.
Well, it's a really exciting
and positive model.
And I can't wait to see what happens.
When the when the new site opens.
Steve, Michael, thank you so much
for joining us on the podcast today.
Let's talk again soon.
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