First Atira housed their clients, now they’re housing their staff — could other non-profits follow suit?

Author Shannon VanRaes
With the average one-bedroom apartment now costing Vancouverites $2,600 per month, co-operatives might hold the key to affordable housing

Why It Matters

Many employees at frontline community services organizations face the same barriers as their clients when it comes to affordable housing: a steeply rising cost of living and low wages. A first-of-its-kind staff co-op could offer an alternative housing model for organizations looking to support their workers.

var TRINITY_TTS_WP_CONFIG = {"cleanText":"First Atira housed their clients, now they\u2019re housing their staff \u2014 could other non-profits follow suit?. Little Michelle used to spend an hour travelling to work and nearly two hours getting home to her basement apartment. But thanks to a new housing co-operative, she and her partner now live in Vancouver\u2019s Gastown neighbourhood, only minutes from Atira Women's Resource Society, where Michelle provides cultural support to Indigenous women. \u201cIt\u2019s a really great building, you can have pets and there\u2019s free laundry,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd I really appreciate that it\u2019s an old building with the high ceilings; there\u2019s original brick and wood too. We also have a pretty good view of the water.\u201d The 31-unit resident

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