Photo by Vince Fedoroff
NEW COMPLEX ON THE BLOCK – Normandy Living, located on Range Road in Whitehorse, is seen Thursday afternoon. Tenants are now being accepted.
Normandy Living brings new concepts to city
The Yukon’s first private seniors’ supportive living community officially opened Thursday and is accepting tenants.
The Yukon’s first private seniors’ supportive living community officially opened Thursday and is accepting tenants.
Normandy Living, located on Range Road in Whitehorse, has 84 modern suites, including housing units for First Nations elders and affordable units for low-income seniors.
Ahmed Hussen, the federal minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion,Yukon MP Brendan Hanley, Ranj Pillai, the minister responsible for the Yukon Housing Corp. (YHC), Social Services Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee and Mayor Laura Cabott marked the opening.
They were joined by Natal Samuelson, the executive director of Normandy Living.
The federal government, through the National Housing Strategy’s National Housing Co-Investment Fund (NHCF), contributed $34.5 million towards the project.
The YHC funded $4.5 million of the cost, while the City of Whitehorse provided $500,000 in development incentives.
KBC Developments Inc., the organization that built and will operate Normandy Living, contributed $1.8 million in land and cash equity from the Yukon partnership initiative.
KBC is owned in equal parts by Borud Enterprises, a group representing Ketza Construction, and Northern Vision Development LP.
Normandy Living is designed to fill a gap in the housing market by providing supportive housing for seniors who will benefit from additional support but are not in need of long-term care.
The five-storey building offers a range of inclusive rental options, including studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom homes, all of which are offered for lease.
Residents will have access to recreational programming, heated parking, community meeting areas, 24-hour security, customized menu options, laundry services and housekeeping. Tenants can also receive Yukon government home care services.
“Seniors and elders are a vital part of the Whitehorse community,” said Hussen.
“That is why our government is pleased to provide funding support to create 84 new homes for seniors and elders right here in Whitehorse.
“Investing in housing with on-site supportive living services for our seniors and elders, like Normandy Living, allows them to age comfortably in the communities they have helped build. This is our government’s National Housing Strategy at work.”
With seniors being the fastest-growing age group in Canada, Hanley said, “we recognize both the immediate and long-term need for affordable seniors’ housing.
“I’m thrilled to see our National Housing Strategy at work in Whitehorse by supporting the opening of an 84-unit seniors’ housing development.
“Investing in critical housing projects like Normandy Living help deliver a secure and dignified retirement for Yukon seniors,” the MP added.
There are 26 below-market homes available at Normandy Living, 10 of which are immediately available to YHC’s senior clients.
The YHC has leased them for 20 years at the cost of $3.5 million.
Eligibility is based on income testing and results of a frailty assessment.
Clients will pay 25 per cent of their income toward rent and 40 per cent toward the services offered.
“Normandy Living is a concrete example of what is possible through the power of partnerships,” said Ranj Pillai, the minister responsible for the YHC.
“This beautiful new complex offers more modern and affordable housing options to meet the growing and diverse needs of Yukon seniors and elders.”
Health and Social Services Minister Tracy-Anne McPhee congratulated “all partners involved with opening Normandy Living.
“This successful initiative sets the stage for future supportive living developments that will enable aging Yukoners to thrive while living independently,” she said.
“Our government cares deeply about the safety and well-being of our elders and seniors, and we remain committed to ensuring our aging population can live full, safe and meaningful lives.”
Cabott called Normandy Living “a collaborative project that will provide housing for our community’s seniors and elders.
“These modern units give our aging community a welcoming place to call home and also provide affordable units for those in need,” the mayor added.
“These projects are critical to helping meet the housing need for people across the housing spectrum, and we are so thankful to mark the opening of yet another multi-unit housing project in Whitehorse.”
Normandy Living “brought together well-known local development and building companies to partner with governments to make this facility a reality,” said Samuelson.
“This allowed us to deliver a project on time and on budget in a very difficult construction environment. It will provide a wonderful and much-needed service to Yukon residents.”
Interested Yukoners are invited to book a tour through the Normandy Living website and meet with representatives to learn more.
Rent geared to income options are available for the government-leased suites by contacting the YHC at ykhouse@yukon.ca or 1-800-661-0408 ext. 5759.
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Comments (36)
Up 3 Down 0
Mary Black on Dec 14, 2022 at 5:02 am
Hello North of 60. You have missed the point. The meal plan is non-negotiable so cooking in the room would be more money out the window. When we inquired about the ‘kitchen’, we were told that residents are prohibited from having appliances due to risk of fire.
Up 1 Down 1
Citizen # 14008963A on Dec 9, 2022 at 10:59 am
Dear it's in line with similar facilities in Alberta and BC on Dec 8, 2022 at 3:54 pm:
It’s in line with similar facilities - STFU! The whole reason that Trudeau is asserting for his dismantling of the country’s structural framework is in the name of big E ‘equity’.
That is, equality applied to outcomes. But, here we see the same old classism reinforced through the delusion of diversity. Somebody quipped with a quote from the movie Tropic Thunder that was essentially a mockumentary about culture that, one should never go “full retard”.
But here we are with an electorate voting and supporting themselves into oblivion with the nihilistic fervour of a paranoid psychotic who has stopped their medication and can no longer keep check on reality.
These senior’s cages are simply overpriced, overvalued, and overstated holding cells - Internment camps, staging areas as status symbols for the diversified classes of privilege - La Nuevo Privileged!
Up 1 Down 3
North_of_60 on Dec 8, 2022 at 8:33 pm
Some people misbelieve the tenants can't cook in their apartment.
Each unit has a kitchen sink, refrigerator and a counter for a variety of kitchen appliances such as microwave, hot-plate, air-fryer, toaster oven, insta-pot, ...what-have-you. One doesn't need a stove with oven to cook food.
Up 2 Down 4
it's in line with similar facilities in Alberta and BC on Dec 8, 2022 at 3:54 pm
True, not every senior can afford $5000/month, but many can. I know of 2 families who've moved their aging parents from elsewhere in Canada to live here. My mom in Alberta pays about $4200 per month, and her room isn't nearly as nice as these.
Up 11 Down 1
Mary Black on Dec 8, 2022 at 1:51 pm
A one-bedroom unit with meals, parking, storage and taxes cost over $6,000 per month. There are no kitchens in the rooms so residents are forced to pay for three expensive meals a day regardless of their eating habits. This facility is marketed as ‘independent living’ but there is no independence. Even laundry facilities are shared. NVD and its various partners have received millions in government funds to build over-priced subsidized housing that will no doubt become another taxpayer burden.
It’s time for the middle income taxpayers who have been contributing to the economy for 50 years and more to rise up and demand suitable housing options for Yukon seniors, including independent and progressive living facilities. There are no options for this demographic, many who are living in their large family homes years longer than they want or need to, often in unsafe conditions and in near total isolation. Yukoners shouldn’t be forced to move Outside to live in suitable accommodations. Wake up Boomers and Gen-Xers. This is your future.
Up 2 Down 7
Adam Smith on Dec 7, 2022 at 9:22 pm
Private sector builds a solution that the public sector can’t provide. They assume responsibility for a mortgage and government assistance in their form of prepaid rents.
CMHC provided the financing. CMHC. No one is calling them out. Maybe there is a robust plan here.
Some of you think that is ‘free money’. Jesus. Can we make Economics 101 a requirement for any commentary on any ‘opinion’ on ‘kickbacks’. These 3 parties have assumed a multi-decade commitment to make this work.
Ranj.. and NVD? WTF? How on any level is this guy in anyone’s back pocket? NVD’s CFO to August 2021 is the Yukon Party’s official agent. NVD’s chair to September 2022 was a NDP Premier of this territory. The Chief operating Officer to November 2021 was the last YP chief of staff, now a current deputy minister. Take your aluminum foil hat off. IMHO he burnt a few bridges in 2015 when he left NVD, There is no Christmas card from NVD to Ranj.
Blinding Attacking NVD for hiring good people and making a difference in this territory is so shortsighted. I guess you also criticize the size of the public sector as well.
If you have an issue with NVD. Don’t buy local. Don’t support local business. Then don’t complain about the lack of choice in in your local market.
This project is an asset to the Yukon. It allows Yukoners to age in place. It is based on models in Canada that have been operating for the last 40 years. Attacking the entrepreneurs who make this happen is really pathetic.
Up 8 Down 1
Eyes on the Money on Dec 7, 2022 at 3:52 pm
So: public money paid for about 95% of this building and yet - a private corporation will make long-term profits.
Another PPP failure. Why doesn't our government get back into running housing, if they want to spend money on it? I'm not excited about giving money to companies for some dude's profit.
Up 11 Down 4
Calvin and Hobbes on Dec 7, 2022 at 8:50 am
Ranj Pillai! Sit down and be quiet - You are misleading the public with your misdirection on the issue of public/private-partnerships:
The report demolishes the claims of P3 advocates about efficiency and innovation. The conclusions could have been written about the Canadian P3 track record:
P3s aren’t free or new money - they’re a hidden form of long-term debt.
Privatized borrowing is more expensive than public financing, which drives up the project costs that governments pay.
Governments, not corporations, are ultimately responsible for the risk of a project failing.
P3 claims of “value for money” use shoddy math that’s biased against the public sector.
The drive to cut costs in P3 contracts often means corner-cutting and poor quality.
P3s are often late and over budget – the opposite of what their promoters claim.
P3 contracts are shrouded in secrecy and can lead to corruption.
P3s distort public policy, including what projects are chosen and where public funds are spent.
Governance is not what you think it is. The so-called digital natives are setting themselves up quite handily for a monetized system of digital slavery. Well done people, well done!
Seriously, how ignorant do you have to be to keep participating in a system that is not what it says it is, seriously?
See Link for P3 Report:
https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/eurodad/pages/1912/attachments/original/1607952619/PPPs_EN.pdf?1607952619
Up 8 Down 5
Calvin and Hobbes on Dec 7, 2022 at 8:19 am
Great post there Life Lived Like a Hypocrisy: An Autobiographical Accounting of Liberalism’s True Pretence on Dec 3, 2022 at 12:23 pm:
However, it’s Peter Johnston not Steve - Not that it matters though - Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.
Now we have diversified totalitarians committing their rainbow prejudices against everyone else in the Liberal war of all against all - The Hobbesian nightmare of Trudeau’s (81/82) constitutional gridlock of individual rights - Truly, a house divided!
You people are so nihilistic with your invitations to the fascistic.
Up 22 Down 1
drum on Dec 6, 2022 at 5:30 pm
Not filled yet because most people do not have the monthly income when they are retired - they cannot afford this!!!!!!!!
Up 48 Down 5
marylaker on Dec 6, 2022 at 12:37 pm
“Normandy Living is a concrete example of what is possible through the power of partnerships,” said Ranj Pillai, the minister responsible for the YHC.
Yes it sure does. Fifty million dollars of government money given to Dave Borud (Borud Enterprizes), Piers McDonald and friends (NVD), and Peter Densmore (Ketza). They kicked in $600,000 each.
This is an atrocious wealth transfer to people who seem to have a pipeline to government money.
Up 4 Down 11
Biggest problem we face today? on Dec 6, 2022 at 12:18 pm
If it's using the term 'senior' or 'elder' that gets people riled up, then I guess we're blessed to not have anything more serious to worry about. Next time you're paying for something, ask for your 'elder discount' and guaranteed you'll get it. As for your 'word salad', @Now that there is MAID, try again to communicate your thoughts?
Up 32 Down 0
Hobo on Dec 5, 2022 at 3:20 pm
I remember back in the old days when folks in the Yukon used to criticize "the old boys' club" for carrying out "another scheme to line certain pockets." Now the tide has changed; the corruption never did.
Up 10 Down 19
what's in a name? Don't get too bent about it on Dec 5, 2022 at 3:13 pm
'Elder' has been a term of respect throughout most cultures for hundreds of years, with the assumption that as people age they provide wisdom and guidance. But 50 years or so ago, older adults started to replace 'elderly' with 'senior' because 'elderly' implied someone nearing the end of life, whereas 'senior citizen' just meant (usually) a retired person. Don't read too much into it, the terms are pretty much interchangeable, and not worth debating
Up 14 Down 4
Now that there is MAID are the dead truly grateful? on Dec 5, 2022 at 8:12 am
Dear John on Dec 3, 2022 at 11:02 am:
The manipulation of language has always been the privilege of an ‘authority’ to wield for and against individuals as the controlling interests see fit to do so. Your dehumanization is necessary to the current humanization of Indigenous cultures not because of raycism but because raycism is a necessary tool for social control.
Equality is eschewed for doublespeak concepts like equity which is simply, Legislated raycism. They know this, lots has been written about this, and it allows for such distinctions; for example, the definition and application of elder.
Just so we are clear here, this is occurring in the context of a socio-legal system that is literally dissembling western societies in favour of more collective-socialist values in the fluidity of a managed morality predicated on identitarian notions of who is, and who is not privileged, based on hierarchical categorizations of virtue.
Up 25 Down 7
Seniors need housing on Dec 5, 2022 at 12:46 am
Having gone through housing issues with 4 seniors, happy to see an assisted living complex. This is very needed! The Thompson Center, Whistle Bend and Copper Ridge are only for severe cases of need-this fills the gap of having to live on your own when you aren't really looking after yourself well, and going to one of those high need facilities. Glad to see options for seniors and their families.
Up 27 Down 5
bonanzajoe on Dec 4, 2022 at 7:28 pm
Al on Dec 4, 2022: There's only demographic group in Canada that are called "Elder". Guess which one. The rest of us who paid into this country are just to be called "Senior".
Up 32 Down 6
bonanzajoe on Dec 4, 2022 at 7:21 pm
@martin on Dec 3, 2022: From the rental price, I would say only the rich could afford to live there. Maybe there isn't enough liberal millionaires in town.
Up 33 Down 4
bonanzajoe on Dec 4, 2022 at 7:19 pm
"Senior" starts at age 65. What age does "Elder" start. If its the same, then why not use the same noun? Is there really a difference between Indigenous and other races?
Up 21 Down 17
Yukoner32 on Dec 4, 2022 at 3:56 pm
Great news. These new units will mean some houses and apartments around town get freed up as people start to move here. Any time we add more units to our mix, it is a benefit. I hope that other building close by opens soon as well. I think the Cunninghams built it, but not sure. Anyways, good to see progress for Housing.
Up 56 Down 8
Max Mack on Dec 4, 2022 at 1:06 pm
If the story is accurate, almost $40 million dollars in capital funding -- to the usual suspects. Pure profit. And city tax payers are left to pick up the development cost shortfall.
Then, YHC leases 26 of the "below market" units over 20 years at an additional cost of $3.5 million? That works out to about $560 per month per unit. I call b.s. on that number. What does that number not include? What cost escalators and lease price adjustment provisions are built into the lease?
We won't know, because we will only be told the fairy tale version.
Bottom line, this is another scheme to line certain pockets.
Up 18 Down 14
Calvin and Hobbes on Dec 4, 2022 at 9:35 am
Dear Lionel Aubin on Dec 3, 2022 at 3:04 pm:
This is not an investment in our “elders”. At best, it is an investment in a segment of our elder population - The ones who our wokisme classes are tearing down statues, monuments, and vandalizing their artwork in protest of… STFU! I find it rather disgusting that you would positively evaluate this project without any real knowledge or context of the wider realities inherent to the intensification of social control through a hierarchical stratification of the identitarian constructs in pursuit of those ideals of social control.
From your workplace cubicles in exchange for credits for food and shelter to your retirement cubicles… GTFOH with your utopian vision of our current dystopian nightmare - Thomas Hobbes’ war of all against all… The eternal Liberal war… Classism - Wherein life has always been nasty, brutish, and short!
How about you millennials et al put down your iPhones and Androids for a while and crack a book or two and begin to understand the world around you before it’s too late because the Social Credit Scores are coming.
The idea of Social Credit Scores are about control - Not about building back better - They are purely authoritarian tools, the blunt instrumentation of the despots hammer and sickle.
Your submission scares me Lionel because it is blind faith in the absence of supporting evidence in the face of the ongoing evidence to suggest nefarious manifestations if not intent!
Up 35 Down 2
Al on Dec 4, 2022 at 7:53 am
John raises a good point.
I remember as a young lad my parents would remind me and my brother "to respect their elders". They went even further and would often say "that their elders were the ones that did such and such". The term senior seemed to have developed by the government when describing a demographic group of the aged population. They wanted to establish a group that was clearly set aside from other age groups. In doing so the term may have been suitable to their bureaucratic needs but it reduced the long standing cultural significance of the term 'elder'. It is little wonder that a droll inference of age over wisdom now exists in this country. A senior holds no cultural meaning while elder is not only respectful but embodies an individual of having a singular place in our society - one to be respected, honoured, a go-to person for guidance and assistance, one with knowledge of day to day things but more importantly the oral history of their kin and themselves. Because 'senior' holds no cultural historical value it has diminished peoples value to society. This is so true in western culture - not all western cultures but for sure North America.
We need to honour our elders for what they represent - for hopefully we will all reach that stage in our life of being one ourselves as we should be.
Up 18 Down 17
Josey Wales on Dec 4, 2022 at 7:36 am
Normandy Living...has a great sound, rolls off the tongue well.
My tongue Anywhoo...
Could be under the Welcome to Canada sign?
As a chronic reminder why we do not speak German, here in what is left of this once great country.
Mind you with the idiot in chief we have been subject to, we will be chanting in Mandarin soon.
I suggest because too many forgot, and many more choose to never reflect much less forget.
Speaking of paying a high price, many already have.
For...Normandy Living. Ironic considering the players involved in this NL.
Up 27 Down 10
martin on Dec 3, 2022 at 11:33 pm
If the occupancy is not filled yet; there is something fishy there.
Up 24 Down 42
Lionel Aubin on Dec 3, 2022 at 3:04 pm
I find this a very good move from the City, and the government to invest for our elders because there is a real need. I was reading some comments, God why are people so negative, just wait until there is more informations regarding the real cost for a unit. Thank you, it is time for improvement in our society.
Up 58 Down 11
Life Lived Like a Hypocrisy: An Autobiographical Accounting of Liberalism’s True Pretence on Dec 3, 2022 at 12:23 pm
At 10,000 per couple per month for leased property suggests that it is not affordable housing but rather a wealth transfer scheme.
Race based aging initiatives are discriminatory but then so are programs that depend on wealth. All individuals who meet the age requirements should be entered into a draw - Your entitlement will be based on randomness rather than some government legislated prejudice.
Now Sandy Silver can live out his end days as a neighbour to a longtime patron of the shelter - Yes Sandy - This is the equity that you have been fighting for and you deserve to have your successes brought home to roost.
You can even walk up and down the hallways puffing out chest and crowing about all the good you have done.
Revel in your successes. Steve Johnston is really proud of you! Put your money where your mouth is Silver! Live up to your own standards unlike any Liberal in sheep’s clothing has done before.
And by the way STAR - It has been noticeable this last little while that you have been favouring pro-Liberal narratives in the comments section - Et tu Brutus!?!?
Up 73 Down 4
John on Dec 3, 2022 at 11:02 am
Hm, senior vs elder? Aren't they one and the same? Or is this being done once again to drive a wedge between two cultures.
To my children and grand children I am not only their elder but am an elder. To the government because of who I am not - I am a senior. Go figure. Why the distinction? Show some damn respect, (if that is at all possible).
You want to break down barriers? Then get rid of the discriminatory practice of name labelling.
Up 48 Down 6
Juniper Jackson on Dec 2, 2022 at 9:04 pm
Its a lovely place for welfare career seniors, FN elders, (which are also seniors). And..there's NVD again. I would not pay out the nose for a smallish unit that my neighbor is paying $30.00 a month or less, for.
Up 27 Down 9
Erik Umbrich on Dec 2, 2022 at 7:12 pm
Congratulations on finishing the project! More units are always good for us here in the Yukon.
Up 42 Down 12
If you cannot afford to pay the rent there is MAID on Dec 2, 2022 at 4:06 pm
Dear Anie on Dec 2, 2022 at 2:31 pm:
This is not a good news story. It’s a gouge, a dodge, and a lot of money for nothing!
Up 98 Down 24
Joe on Dec 2, 2022 at 3:58 pm
Ranj public money and NVD. Big surprise.
Up 57 Down 19
bonanzajoe on Dec 2, 2022 at 3:57 pm
Can't wait to see the annual renovation costs.
Up 77 Down 13
Lost In the Yukon on Dec 2, 2022 at 3:48 pm
… haha $10,000 a month for a couple and you can’t cook in your tiny unit.
Up 118 Down 39
Fred Penner on Dec 2, 2022 at 3:05 pm
"including housing units for First Nations elders"
Cool, race based housing. Too bad you are a Caucasian Elder, you'll have to pay the "privledge tax" and get the leftovers on what units are left, lol.
Up 32 Down 47
Anie on Dec 2, 2022 at 2:31 pm
A good news story!