Indigenous Housing + Healing Centre
112 affordable new homes for Indigenous individuals and families
The Indigenous Housing and Healing Centre aims to re-establish a First Nations presence in the Downtown Eastside in a way that is bold and inspiring. The multi-purpose development supports Indigenous individuals and families by providing 112 affordable rental units, support services, and a 32,000 square foot Healing Centre in one building.
Designed to welcome everyone with dignity, respect, honour and love, the building offers a safe and inclusive space the Healing Centre will offer a holistic approach to wellness focused on the spiritual, emotional, physical and mental elements of well-being and a two-eyed approach to healing that blends Indigenous and Western medicine. It also includes a Food Centre with a commercial kitchen and dining hall, offices, staff and meeting rooms and amenity spaces.
LAND
Located On the traditional territory of the the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Peoples, also known as Vancouver, BC
The site for this development was complex and included a pre-existing building with structural entanglements with an adjacent building, which required Lu’ma Development Management (LDM) to conduct a site analysis and provide recommendations to the client.
PEOPLE
TARGET POPULATION: Designed for urban Indigenous families with lower incomes and vulnerable individuals in need of supportive housing.
CLIENT: Aboriginal Land Trust Society
OPERATORS: Lu’ma Native Housing Society, Vancouver Aboriginal Health Society, and RainCity Housing and Support Society
BUILDING
UNITS: 112 new homes, including 59 rental units for Indigenous families with lower incomes and 53 supportive studio units to house vulnerable populations.
STATUS: Completed in 2026
CULTURAL EXPRESSION: The design, inspired by a longhouse wrapped in a blanket, was the result of a unique visioning process that involved community workshops led by Elders and Knowledge Keepers from the host Nations.
FUNDING
LDM worked closely with the project funders and lenders, design team, and construction manager to shepherd the design through a difficult construction budget environment to secure the necessary funding.
FUNDERS: BC Housing’s Indigenous Housing Fund, CMHC’s Co-Investment Fund, Indigenous Services Canada, and City of Vancouver