Six decades on, Columbus Homes keeps growing with new Cloverdale project

My latest work, for the B.C. Catholic newspaper.

It took a lot more than the “luck of the Irish” to make possible the St. Patrick’s Day opening in Cloverdale of Zappone Manor, the newest housing project from the Knights of Columbus.

The March 17 ribbon-cutting for the $40-million, 89-unit affordable-rental seniors’ building was the result of 10 years of resolute fundraising, broad-based partnership-building, and countless planning meetings by Columbus Homes, the charitable arm of Knights councils in B.C.

“Today, we celebrate a massive achievement,” Herb Yang, Supreme Director of the Knights of Columbus, told an audience of 250 at a reception following the ribbon cutting.

Yang said years of complex work surrounding financing and planning went into the South Surrey project. “Today, that persistence has turned into reality,” he said.

Columbus Homes president Mike Garisto said his society could not have completed the project alone, saying it “took a community to accomplish. Among the partners were the B.C. Elks Association, the Royal Canadian Legion, the Lions Club, and Knights councils. Columbus Homes vice president and treasurer Theo Vanden Hoven, MP Tamara Jansen, and Columbus Homes president Mike Garisto at the Zappone Manor ribbon cutting.

Conservative Member of Parliament Tamara Jansen (Cloverdale—Langley City) praised the groups for the dedication the effort took, saying “I think anybody involved in this project should get an honorary degree in patience.”

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke said the project would never have been completed without the leadership of Columbus Homes. “It takes people with the kind of dogged determination” shown by Garisto, she said. “We know we have a critical need for below-market housing, especially for seniors ... Senior citizens deserve to be treated well in our community.” Talking from a stage bedecked with green St. Patrick’s Day decorations and wearing an Irish top hat himself, Garisto said March 17 was chosen as the opening date for Zappone Manor in recognition of the fact that Columbus Homes’ early fundraising efforts involved the selling of shamrocks, similar to the Royal Canadian Legion’s poppies.

But it took much more than shamrock sales to raise the money needed to complete Zappone Manor. Garisto said the Senior Citizens Housing of South Surrey Society contributed land with a 99-year-lease worth about $10.5 million.

The nearly $30-million project was supported by about $19 million in loans from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation – $1.3 million of it forgivable – along with a $9.7-million contribution from the Columbus Charities Association that included a $6.2-million provincial grant.

The City of Surrey, Metro Vancouver, and TransLink waived $985,226 in development cost charges.

With the opening of Zappone Manor, Columbus Homes now operates 10 seniors residences with 550 units throughout the province. The residence is named after Cloverdale community activist Bruno Zappone, who served on the board of the Senior Citizens Housing of South Surrey Society for 50 years. He died in 2021 at the age of 95.

The independent-living facility features 67 studio and one-bedroom suites, and 19 accessible suites, with rates priced 30 to 40 percent below market, Garisto said.

Zappone Manor welcomed its first tenants in late March. The initial 50 occupants are moving from an aged apartment building nearby. Information on tenancy can be obtained by calling 604-250-6444.

That older building will be demolished, and Columbus Homes has longe-range plans to put a second apartment building on a portion of the property. Columbus Homes was founded in 1965 by 13 members of the Knights of Columbus, receiving its charter on July 29 of that year.

The organization was created to provide stable, affordable housing for seniors, with an emphasis on community and dignity.

Its early projects established a foundation in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, with residences built in Vancouver, Delta, and Chilliwack, including Columbus Towers in Vancouver, Columbus Lodge in Delta, and Columbus Manor in Chilliwack.

In recent years, Columbus Homes has expanded through acquisitions. In 2019, it took on two Prince Rupert properties, Kaien Place and Wayne Place. That was followed in 2020 and 2021 by the acquisition of two Maple Ridge seniors’ residences, Fraser View Manor and Legion Manor, through an agreement with the Legion. In 2023, the organization added a Chilliwack residence, The Waverly, previously operated by Optima Living.

In Surrey, Columbus Homes also manages Hoffman Manor and Southdale I and II, maintains the. John Paul II Pastoral Centre and manages the pastoral centre’s St. Joseph's Residence for priests.

Looking ahead, Columbus Homes is exploring additional projects, including a proposed 56-suite development in Vernon, a 53-suite project in the Lower Mainland, and three developments with a combined value of more than $200 million. Plans are also underway for a second phase next to Zappone Manor.