BANFF – The Town of Banff is seeking input from residents about its plans to build a new price-restricted homeownership development on the 300 block of Banff Avenue.
An online survey runs, which runs until next Friday (Aug. 21), can be found on the municipality’s website at https://banffviewpoints.ca/banff-avenue-affordable-housing-development.
Officials say council will determine the timeline for the Banff Avenue for-purchase housing development in late summer, but at present it’s slated for completion in spring 2022.
“Due to the COVID pandemic and other circumstances currently impacting our community, we are reaching out to potential home buyers to determine interest in the development,” according to a Facebook post by the Town of Banff.
In 2013, the Banff Housing Corporation (BHC) purchased three lots at 338-340 Banff Ave., which included the former Hockey House, for $1.3 million.
Last year, council decided to develop this land into a multi-family, high-density apartment housing units that will be for sale to qualified buyers.
The plan is for a price-restricted model, which means BHC subsidizes the property and continues to own a percentage of the building, generally 20 per cent. The buyer pays for and owns the remaining 80 per cent.
A homeowner who later resells the unit only sells their portion of the property, which is restricted to increase in value by a maximum of two per cent per year, compounded annually.
The new survey has a list of 19 questions, including one about what is the maximum amount people can afford to spend on a home based on their current income – as low as $150,000-$249,000 to as high as $650,000-plus.
Administration also asks how confident people are in their financial ability to purchase housing in the next 24 months considering implications surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
Questions also centre on the size of units that potential buyers are interested in, both in terms of square footage and number of bedrooms, and what sort of amenities people want, such as communal laundry or in-suite laundry, covered bike parking, common outdoor space, dedicated unit parking, and storage among others.
