The federal and British Columbia governments are backing an 11-storey mixed-use development in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside with $96 million in financing.

The project at 172 Cordova St. will include 118 rental homes along with retail, educational and cultural space. MAC Development and Housing Society, a partnership involving Lu’ma Native Housing Society, Frog Hollow Neighbourhood House and Affordable Housing Societies, will own the building and operate the rental units.

The residential component will include 79 homes for middle-income households through BC Builds and 39 deeply affordable units for people receiving income assistance. Nearly half of the middle-income homes are expected to rent at 20 per cent below market rates.

The development will include nine storeys of housing, with units ranging from studios to three bedrooms.

The University of British Columbia has purchased approximately 10,000 square feet on the ground and second floors for its Learning Exchange, adding an institutional ownership component to the project. The ground floor will also contain a community theatre and leasable retail units, with retail revenue supporting building operations.

The City of Vancouver provided the development site, adding municipal land to a capital structure that combines government financing, nonprofit ownership and institutional investment.

The project provides an example of the financing structures being used to advance mixed-use rental development in Vancouver, where high land and construction costs have challenged project economics.

BC Builds was launched in 2024 to accelerate rental housing for middle-income households through government land, financing and development partnerships.