Habitat for Humanity has backed out of buying land in Sooke for affordable housing.

The organization was eyeing a piece of land located at 2008 Murray Rd, which is currently zoned as parkland and owned by the Sooke Lions Club.

Habitat for Humanity planned to build a cluster of townhouses on the property, which would have varied between two and four bedrooms, each around 1,200 square feet in size.

Yolanda Meijer, chief executive director for Habitat, said the main reason the decision to pull the application was due to poor timing, controversy over the land the project was to be built on, and delays in the rezoning process at municipal hall.

B次元官网网址淭here was a lot of factors, and we donB次元官网网址檛 think there is anyone to blame. We should have submitted our application sooner, but we had a couple of unexpected things happen,B次元官网网址� Meijer said.

She added that Habitat didnB次元官网网址檛 predict the rezoning process to take so long, and because of the change in municipal government coming up, the project would have been postponed even longer.

Sooke Lions president Al Beddows explained council wanted to hold off on the process until January next year, and Habitat said that wouldnB次元官网网址檛 work because it conflicts with other projects they are working on.

B次元官网网址淲e just lost 12 units of affordable housing because the district was dragging their feet,B次元官网网址� said Beddows, who plans to run in this fallB次元官网网址檚 civic election.

[Sooke council] preaches how much Sooke needs affordable housing, well they had it on their lap and they let it slip.B次元官网网址�

Beddows added that many of the Lions are feeling frustrated because the land will be hard to sell if council continues to drag out the process.

B次元官网网址淚t makes it hard because if Habitat for Humanity canB次元官网网址檛 get the zoning through in a timely manner, how is anyone else supposed to? It makes it look like Sooke is difficult to do business with,B次元官网网址� Beddows said.

Sooke Coun. Kevin Pearson said he, along with the other councillors, are disappointed to lose the opportunity.

B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not entirely sure what happened, and I wouldB次元官网网址檝e liked to have seen the application come before council at a public hearing, but appears that bureaucracy got in the way,B次元官网网址� Pearson said. B次元官网网址淚t seems like our internal process didnB次元官网网址檛 suit theirs at this time.B次元官网网址�

Pearson said Habitat for Humanity is a world-class organization, and their project would have been a perfect fit for Sooke.

B次元官网网址淭his was a golden opportunity for Sooke, and it appears to be lost,B次元官网网址� Pearson said. B次元官网网址淎ffordable housing is fundamental for our community, and I would like to see the process and timelines for projects like this sped up in the future.B次元官网网址�

Sooke Mayor Maja Tait agreed, and said the project didnB次元官网网址檛 work out because of unfortunate timing.

B次元官网网址淚 know Habitat has their own timelines, and we tried to prioritize their application, but unfortunately our timelines didnB次元官网网址檛 match up. We didnB次元官网网址檛 get to see the application before it came to council, but we tried to get the rezoning done in three months, which usually would take anywhere from six months to a year,B次元官网网址� Tait said.

B次元官网网址淏ut maybe thatB次元官网网址檚 something we could look at going forward, is trying to make some sort of a system where we could move affordable housing applications along even quicker.B次元官网网址�

Tait said she spoke with Habitat, and though this particular site didnB次元官网网址檛 work out, the district and Habitat are going to continue trying to bring an affordable housing project to Sooke.

B次元官网网址淚 look forward to working with them in the near future,B次元官网网址� Tait said.

Another reason Habitat decided to pull the plug on the project was because of how many concerns were brought forward about the land at the projectB次元官网网址檚 open house.

Beddows said the land was used as a park, but the club decommissioned it because it wasnB次元官网网址檛 being used. Regardless, some people in the community want the land to be left as green space.

The Lions are still going to try and rezone the land and have it sold, whether itB次元官网网址檚 used for housing, commercial space, or as a parking lot.

B次元官网网址淲e were unaware there was controversy about the land, so it definitely caught us off guard,B次元官网网址� Meijer said.

She also noted that while Habitat was waiting for this project to get approved, another large project in Saanich was approved. Habitat feared that the timelines would collide, and working on two big projects would be too much at once.

B次元官网网址淚t was unexpected because the land was donated to us, and wherever land is donated, Habitat will go there first,B次元官网网址� Meijer said. B次元官网网址淏ut I donB次元官网网址檛 want Sooke to think that we arenB次元官网网址檛 interested or are scared away. We just thought it wasnB次元官网网址檛 in our best interest to move forward in purchasing the land at this time. We want to make sure all the controversy is resolved.B次元官网网址�

She said Habitat will likely look into doing a project in Sooke sometime next year, once the Saanich project is finished.

B次元官网网址淲e are still keen for a location, and we hope it happens. We will continue to work with the Lions and the District, and would be delighted to build in Sooke, whether itB次元官网网址檚 on that site or not,B次元官网网址� said Meijer.