Exterior full building image of 1321 Richards Street Social Housing

Project Essentials

  • LocationVancouver, BC
  • ClientGranville Mennonite Housing Society
  • ArchitectNSDA Architects
  • Size54,000 ft² (5,016 m²)
  • BudgetC$17 million
  • Address1321 Richards St, Vancouver, BC V6B 0E2

The project, located in Vancouver’s trendy Yaletown neighbourhood, provides subsidized rental housing as part of British Columbia’s Provincial Homelessness Initiative.

Exterior close up of 1321 Richards Street Social Housing
Exterior of 1321 Richards Street Social Housing

Eighty-seven self-contained studio apartments offer tenants independence inside a vibrant, healthy community; 30 units have been designated for recovery from various drug- and alcohol-related addictions in partnership with Vancouver Coastal Health.

One of a number of social housing projects undertaken by Fast + Epp, this complex included 14 storeys of residential space, plus an underground parkade. Construction consisted of cast-in-place concrete flat plate floor slabs and moderate ductile concrete shear walls.

Exterior of 1321 Richards Street Social Housing
Exterior of 1321 Richards Street Social Housing, communal gardens featured in the foreground

A large outdoor terrace, spacious common living room, library and computer room, and fitness studio foster health and wellbeing, and provide areas to gather and socialize.