Quality, attainable and thoughtfully-designed housing is how Chris Pollen, founder of Boxfort Homes, describes the company’s projects in Revelstoke. Hemlock, a collection of 39 residences in Revelstoke’s growing Southside neighbourhood offers multifamily townhouses as a practical housing solution for the community.
Being one of Boxfort’s primary areas of focus, Revelstoke’s rapid growth as a resort town presented a clear need for accessible housing. The Hemlock project spanned several years of planning and began taking shape when Boxfort acquired the mid-size lot opposite the Southside grocery store, one of the various amenities Pollen has been drawn in by.
The company later purchased two other properties attached to the lot to complete the Humbert Street corner, including Peaks Revelstoke townhomes, a new stacked-townhome development.
“You have this great local grocery store, you have the greenbelt and these trails, you have Kovach Park and two schools. Southside has more going for it than some neighbourhoods in way larger cities,” Pollen said.
Boxfort’s houses were designed as multifamily rather than single-family homes, a decision which Pollen explained aligns with the Revelstoke Official Community Plan (OCP).
“The OCP encourages infill development and for 15 per cent of all-new homes to be multifamily with doors,” he said. “That’s exactly what we are providing here at Hemlock.”
With extensive experience building similar multifamily townhouses in Calgary, Whistler, Squamish and Victoria, Pollen has seen just how these builds succeed in other communities.
“No one was doing it in Revelstoke,” he said. “We saw an opportunity to increase density and transform this lot in a way that benefits the community.”
Hemlock Townhouses
Hemlock townhouses have flexible floorplans designed to optimise living. Boxfort offset the smaller square footage of 1350 sq. ft by spreading the three or
four spacious bedrooms and numerous bathrooms over three levels. The living spaces are light and stylish, with functional layouts to effectively utilize the space. Each home also contains a private garage.
Many of the townhouses include a legal micro-suite of 300 sq. ft, containing a kitchenette, washer, dryer and bathroom. This offers the benefit of self-contained living, and additional value to the houses. It is forward-thinking should the rental opportunities allowed in single-family housing extend to multi-family.
“Boxfort believes that bed and breakfasts should also be allowed in multi-family houses,” Pollen said. “Everyone should be able to participate in a resort community.”
In addition to a functional and cutting edge interior, Pollen was committed to ensuring the exterior reflected the natural beauty of the Revelstoke. The homes are inspired by Norwegian design, featuring bold architectural expression with vertical cedar siding.
A practical draw of the exterior is the front door entrances on Humbert Street, which give the townhouses a proper home feel and offer convenience for guests and deliveries.
Southside location
Hemlock Neighbourhood has an optimal spot in the heart of Southside. The townhouses are located directly across from the grocery store, with a 10-minute walk downtown and a seven-minute drive to Revelstoke Mountain Resort. With close proximity to Kovach Park and the Greenbelt Trails, outdoor recreation is truly on its doorstep.
“Our aim is providing a healthy, happy and safe place to call your own as well as integrating you into the community as much as we possibly can,” Pollen said.
Pollen hopes the block will also contribute to Southside becoming a more commercial neighbourhood by creating gentle density, as encouraged by the OCP.
“Density is required to bring some of those businesses in and we thought ‘what a beautiful way to do it’,” he said.
Attainable housing
Hemlock homes are designed with real Revelstoke residents in mind – people who live, work and are connected to the community here – and locals were given first access to the townhouses before they went to the public.
Boxfort wanted Hemlock to be accessible for middle income families, and consider the neighbourhood as middle-income housing in terms of new builds in Revelstoke.
“We wanted to use nice materials, but also be thoughtful so that the houses were not overpriced and excessive”, Pollen explained.
They have already seen significant uptake from families, as well as some of the townhouses being used to accommodate staff working for businesses in the area.
Pollen also highlighted the growing interest from individuals and families considering permanent or seasonal moves to Revelstoke. In a community with an evolving demographic, Boxfort ensured that Hemlock could meet a diverse range of needs, ultimately making it an attainable option for as many as possible.
“We’re very excited about what we’ve delivered, and the ongoing impact Hemlock will have on the community.”
Peaks Revelstoke Townhomes
Peaks is one of three Boxfort Homes developments which take advantage of what Pollen said is Southside’s unique mix of zoning and housing scenarios that
could be developed.
“You can have this mix of single units, and townhomes and that next to the post office and create these really walkable communities. And you can do that sustainably in the Southside.”
With Boxfort hailing from Calgary, Pollen has seen communities developed with thousands of single-family homes before assets like transit, schools and shops can be supported. Keeping that in mind, he wants Peaks Townhomes to help with the city’s overall plans to develop Southside into a neighbourhood node in the coming years, bringing in the population density needed to support more businesses and resources within the area.
“By adding the houses in a gentle density way, especially with town homes, we’re able to help impact that social benefit.”
Peaks Revelstoke townhomes’ location is another measure of how developing Southside as a node could increase public transit usage, bike infrastructure and more. Growth would be aided by an increased population within Southside, Pollen said, explaining that sustainability means minimizing impact on current city utilities and infrastructure along with environmental impact.
“We didn’t increase the number of pipes or the amount of pipes in Humbert. We didn’t increase the amount of sidewalks or snow removal or anything like
that. But we put more tax on that lot which will now generate [money] to the city. That creates a more sustainable economic city.”
Concerns that the growing focus on Southside could lead to future displacement of residents will require strategies from the city, developers and the neighbourhood to make sure as many within Southside benefit.
“There’s a lot of life left in a lot of those houses, a lot of those lots. I think the community will experience change in many different ways,” Pollen said, explaining owners could explore utilizing the space of larger lots for possible subdivision, carriage homes and other density solutions that would align with Revelstoke’s goals for Southside.
“It’s a case of what housing innovations can we utilize in a neighbourhood like Southside?”
What did you think of this story?
Your feedback after we publish a story helps ensure we're always improving our reporting to better serve you
