The developer behind the innovative Zibi project that straddles the Ontario-Quebec border in the Ottawa River is at it again — this time introducing an unusual rental building called Common at Zibi.
It’s the first rental building on the Ottawa side for Dream Unlimited at Zibi; it’s the first time a private sector company has led the initiative to partner with Ottawa Community Housing, providing two floors of affordable housing to the non-profit; and it’s the first foray into Canada for the U.S.-based co-living company Common, which offers shared units aimed at young professionals.
All of that will create an interesting micro community in this mixed-income building.
So, just what is it?
Common at Zibi is a 25-storey rental building with 207 units on Chaudière Island, just south of Chaudière Falls, with incredible views of the falls, Parliament Hill, the Gatineau Hills, the War Museum and, of course, the Ottawa River. The ground floor will be commercial/retail, floors two to eight sit on a wide podium and are made up of the co-living units, floors nine and 10 in the tower are owned by Ottawa Community Housing, and the remaining floors are traditional apartments offered at market rates.
“It’s going to be a beautiful building in a beautiful location,” says Matthew Micksin, vice-president of real estate at Common, which saw the partnership as an ideal entry into the Canadian market. “We’re really excited about it.”
Adds Cliff Youdale, chief development officer for Ottawa Community Housing: “Clearly, they were looking at true community building as opposed to just building a building on its own accord. So, that was really encouraging.”
The integration of these types of affordable housing options is a pilot project that could be a model for future developments, says Justin Robitaille, vice-president of development for Dream Unlimited.
What is co-living?
Essentially, it’s a modern version of “what people have been doing forever, which is having roommates as a way to be able to afford to live” on their own, particularly if they’re new to a city, says Micksin. “But we’re really improving and optimizing it and providing an institutional delivery of that that makes it more convenient.”
The 48 co-living units at Common at Zibi are apartments with three to five bedrooms and shared kitchen, living room and sometimes bathrooms. Through Common, which acts as the leasing agent, a tenant simply rents a bedroom that fits their budget, the floor they’d like to be on and the view they want. The apartments come fully furnished, including dishes, and there is regular cleaning provided for the unit’s shared areas.
Common also works to create a sense of community by regularly organizing events for tenants and getting them to connect with each other. There is a Zibi-specific app to facilitate renting and to communicate any issues with a unit, but there will also be staff on site.
It’s a model that Common has been finetuning since it started in 2015 in New York City. Today, the company manages about 6,000 units across the United States, about two-thirds of which are co-living, and tenants in any Common building have access to other Common buildings in other cities.
“For us, as a developer and owner, we really appreciate (in) working with them how they look at systemizing and improving that shared housing model by really focusing on member experience and fostering true community in the home, which is obviously well-aligned with what Zibi is trying to achieve overall,” says Robitaille.
The units are aimed at young professionals who are just establishing themselves in their careers.
“It’s a really convenient offering that also helps people get the most out of their rent cheque,” says Micksin. “It’s really attractive to people moving to Ottawa who are new to the city and want to be able to land with something that they think is quality, that they trust, they don’t have to go through a process of finding their own roommates, finding their own furniture. (There are) lots of great facilities for people, it’s in a great location, the views are beautiful and you can get that at a price point that is really attractive.”
Co-living bedrooms will start in the range of about $1,200 to $1,650.
Ottawa Community Housing
Two full floors, for a total of 19 units, will be owned by Ottawa Community Housing (OCH), featuring similar layouts, sizes, features and finishes as the market-rate units and with access to all the building’s amenities.
“We saw it as a great opportunity to access some units, in a highly integrated way, in a great community, at an affordable price,” says Youdale.
The OCH units will include both one- and two-bedroom units (some with dens and two that are barrier-free), with rents starting at $1,347.
OCH will manage the renting of its units — the leasing process is expected to begin in December with spring move-ins — but Common will oversee maintenance and upkeep of shared spaces such as hallways. Common will also oversee leasing for the rest of the building, including the market-rate units.
Traditional apartments
Making up the upper floors of the building, the market-rate units are either one or two bedrooms.
All units in the building will have in-suite laundry, quartz counters, stainless-steel appliances and access to all amenities and bicycle storage. Parking, which is available at a ratio of about one space per two units, is available as an extra that is first-come, first-served.
Robitaille anticipates the market-rate units will appeal to a mix of tenants, from young professionals to empty nesters.
Rents for these units will begin at $1,600.
Amenities
There are several and include a full floor of amenity space on the top floor — which means fabulous views in all directions — and dedicated amenities on the third floor.
Top-floor amenities include kitchens, lounges and meeting rooms that can be booked, a co-working space and terraces on both the east and west sides of the building.
On the third floor there’s an extensive gym, plus a huge outdoor furnished terrace with community planter boxes that overlooks Head Street Square (where community activities and events have already taken place), a kitchen, dining room, lounge, co-working space, and combined games room and movie theatre.
As well, even non-co-living residents will have access to events organized by Common to promote community connection.
Robitaille sees the amenity offering as one of the biggest appeals of the building. “This is, I think, by far the highest-quality and most generous we’ve been from an amenity offering perspective … We see those as being very well used, great places to hold more community events for residents in the building and so I think that will be a huge draw.”
But along with that, he notes, are the level of finishes, the building’s sustainability features (which include zero carbon heating and cooling) and the views. “Any which way you’re looking … you get some incredible views pretty much anywhere in that building.”
Pre-leasing starts this month with first residents occupying in December. Further floors will be opened for occupancy as they are completed. The building is expected to finish construction by spring.
“Hats off to Dream,” says Youdale. “We don’t see too many opportunities (where) we have a private sector partner reaching out to us … It was a great vision — and a great vision for what they have for the broader Zibi community — and we’re just glad to be part of it.”
Robitaille is anxious for the building to officially launch to see how it is received. “But I think it’s worth being creative and exploring some of these (housing options),” he adds. “Hopefully, it pays off.”
For more information on the co-living and market-rate units, visit common.com.
For more information on the OCH units, visit OCH’s affordable housing branch, ARRIV Properties, at arriv.ca.
