One day in the not-so-distant future, the community that includes Vanier Park, the Kitsilano Indian Reserve, and the adjacent streets around Burrard Street to 1st Avenue to Creekside Park will be described as the Sen̓áḵw neighbourhood of Vancouver.

Using a hand-carved tool that was traditionally used for digging post holes for houses, Squamish Nation Chairperson Khelsilem broke ground Tuesday on an 11-acre development site flanking the Burrard Bridge. When completed, a new community called Senakw will feature more than 6,000 mostly rental homes spread across 11 towers.

The government of Canada will help finance the Squamish First Nation’s Sen̓áḵw development in Kitsilano by providing a $1.4 billion low-interest construction loan. The Sen̓áḵw project is slated to be a high-density development with 6,000 homes in 11 towers, built on a four-hectare patch — equivalent to about four city blocks — of reserve land around the south end of the Burrard Bridge. The loan announced Tuesday will finance the construction of the first two of four planned phases of the project, about 3,000 homes.

The federal government is providing a $1.4-billion loan to Squamish Nation to build 3,000 homes on land that was once an ancient village that was burned and expropriated a century ago. At a groundbreaking ceremony held Tuesday, the Squamish Nation said the development is the largest Indigenous-led housing and retail development in the history of Canada.

Ian Gillespie, the Westbank Corporation CEO, accepted a token 50 cent payment from members of the Squamish Nation during a ceremony under the Burrard Bridge on Tuesday, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau turned the sod to begin the four-phase, 11-tower Senakw condo project.

In Vancouver, Indigenous Communities Get Prime Land, and Power

A major new high-rise development in Vancouver to be built on Squamish Nation reserve land was front page news this week, with the signing of a services agreement between the Squamish and City of Vancouver. But the Squamish Nations’ 11-tower, 6,000-unit Senakw project at the foot of Burrard Street Bridge isn’t the only major residential project being developed by First Nations in Metro Vancouver.

With the traditional, unceded territory of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) as a backdrop, Squamish Nation signed a memorandum of understanding with the City of Vancouver for a service agreement, intended to provide utilities to a planned 6,000-unit housing development on reserve land near Burrard Street Bridge.

The Squamish First Nation announced today that it has achieved a services agreement with the City of Vancouver for Senakw. While the multi-tower, mixed-use development does not need to follow the municipal government’s planning processes as it is located on the First Nation’s reserve, the development critically depends on the city to provide it with utilities connections, specifically water and storm sewer services. Additionally, the agreement stipulates “significant upgrades and investments to pedestrian, cycling, transit, and road improvements.”

Squamish First Nation members overwhelmingly voted to approve the massive development on their 12-acre Kitsilano reserve in late 2019. Thus allowing band leaders to seal the partnership with local developer Westbank and continue their work with refining the design concept.

As Squamish First Nation’s Senakw development sits within the band’s Kitsilano reserve lands, the project does not need to go through the City of Vancouver’s lengthy application process. But it still has the support of the municipal government. In response to the First Nation’s referendum Tuesday that approved the project with a landslide result, earlier this afternoon the city publicly announced its support for the project and willingness to continue discussions with the First Nation on how city staff may be engaged and, if desired, how the city can best work as a government partner.

Based on an independent analysis by Ernst & Young, over a theoretical 110-year life cycle, Senakw will generate between $16 billion to $20 billion, with the First Nation receiving 50%. These numbers are based on a mix of 70% market rental housing, and 30% leasehold market strata condominiums. For the First Nation, rental income alone would generate $8 billion to $10 billion over the entire life cycle, strata profits would bring in $290 million over the first 10 years, and the nation amenity contribution (NAC) would bring in $180 million over the first 10 years.

Based on an independent analysis by Ernst & Young, over a theoretical 110-year life cycle, Senakw will generate between $16 billion to $20 billion, with the First Nation receiving 50%. These numbers are based on a mix of 70% market rental housing, and 30% leasehold market strata condominiums. For the First Nation, rental income alone would generate $8 billion to $10 billion over the entire life cycle, strata profits would bring in $290 million over the first 10 years, and the nation amenity contribution (NAC) would bring in $180 million over the first 10 years.

Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart says he supports a local First Nation's plan to build a large-scale housing project in the centre of the city. Stewart called Senakw “ a golden opportunity, both in terms of reconciliation and in providing much needed rental housing for the city”, adding that while there are no requirements for the nation to adhere to city policies, it is communicating in good faith with the city to make the project as successful and mutually advantageous as possible.