A former Salt Spring Land Bank Society property is unlikely to be available for future affordable housing development, according to one island official, who said the 7.8-acre parcel known locally as Brackett Springs is set to pass into private ownership.
Salt Spring’s Local Community Commission (LCC) heard the news from LCC member and Capital Regional District (CRD) director Gary Holman during a public meeting Thursday, Jan. 16. Holman told commissioners there was an “accepted offer” for the foreclosed parcel; creditor Vancity had been seeking a buyer since court-ordered foreclosure proceedings in 2022.
“There was another group forming around exploring possibilities,” said Holman. “[But] I believe this is a private buyer, and it’s my understanding that they’re not pursuing the affordable housing angle.”
Originally made available to the Land Bank Society by islander Herbert Brackett, the property on Rainbow Road was rezoned in 2009 for 10 units of affordable housing, with a covenant and housing agreement attached.
Over the next 10 years, according to contemporary CRD reports, 20 building permits were issued at various times for the property, all of which eventually expired. In dozens of site visits, inspectors documented multiple buildings with some work begun then falling into disrepair, as well as repeated observations of garbage piles, derelict vehicles and unapproved occupancy.
As delays mounted, grant funding from the CRD was withdrawn in 2015 and a notice on title recorded against the property in 2019. And in 2023, as the property’s forced sale foreclosure languished without a buyer, Salt Spring’s Local Trust Committee — citing concerns that a court-ordered purchaser might acquire the property with the density in place yet unbound by affordability requirements –– discharged its housing agreement.
Islands Trust staff had noted the possibility that the property could potentially be purchased for a single dwelling, although at the time creditor Vancity was actively –– if up to then unsuccessfully –– marketing the property in terms of its potential for affordable housing.
The Canada Revenue Agency revoked the Land Bank Society’s charity registration in May 2024.
Holman on Thursday told commissioners the situation was still somewhat “to be determined” as now the court needs to approve the sale.
“We’ll see what the outcome is,” he said, “but it doesn’t look like Brackett Springs is going to be available for affordable housing.”