Across Canada, Black-led community organizations are advancing housing projects at different stages of development, from early planning and organizational capacity-building to construction. The initiatives presented here reflect work underway in Greater Vancouver, Toronto, and Nova Scotia, each shaped by local context, partnerships, and community priorities. Across many contexts, Black-led housing initiatives have advanced their work in environments where Black communities have had limited voice in housing policy and planning, as well as constrained access to land and long-term development tools.
Strengthening a Community Land Trust model
Hogan’s Alley Society—Greater Vancouver Area
Hogan’s Alley Society (HAS) is a Black-led non-profit organization based in Metro Vancouver. Its work focuses on advancing the social, cultural, and economic well-being of people of African descent, with an emphasis on land stewardship, community development, and housing as a foundation for long-term stability.
HAS is advancing a Community Land Trust to support culturally rooted housing for Vancouver’s Black community, using the Hogan’s Alley Block as its flagship site. Hogan’s Alley Society has been working with the City of Vancouver to ensure that the redevelopment of the Hogan’s Alley Block reflects the legacy of Strathcona’s Black community, which was displaced by the construction of viaducts.
The project supports social inclusion and community engagement by centering Black leadership and participation in planning and decision-making processes in housing and land development.
The Centre’s Sector Transformation Fund – Local Projects (STF-L) supported a project that built the internal systems needed to advance the Community Land Trust over the long term.
Key components of the project include:
- Community Land Trust strategy and governance
Development of a comprehensive strategic and operational plan for the Community Land Trust, including governance structures, land acquisition approaches, financial and pro forma modeling tools, and decision-making protocols. These tools are intended to support growth, guide partnerships, and ensure long-term organizational and financial sustainability. - Internship and capacity-building model
Design and launch of a paid internship focused on building housing development knowledge and experience for a Black community member. The model includes a training curriculum, supervision framework, onboarding materials, and performance assessment tools, all documented to support future use and adaptation. - Partnership strategy
Creation of a structured approach for identifying and working with culturally aligned non-profits, faith-based institutions, and Black landowners who own land but do not have development capacity. This includes partnership guides, outreach tools, risk-sharing frameworks, and memorandum of understanding templates.
Together, this work supports a shift in how Hogan’s Alley Society approaches housing development. By investing in planning, governance, and internal capacity, the organization is laying the groundwork to lead future housing projects directly.
Building organizational readiness for integrated housing
Somali Centre for Culture and Recreation—Toronto
The Somali Centre for Culture and Recreation (SCCR) is a Toronto-based community organization that delivers cultural, recreational, and educational programs for the city’s Somali community. It was created to provide spaces that support community connection, youth development, and access to services, and has since expanded its work to include affordable housing as part of a broader community infrastructure vision.
The project builds on decades of community organizing by Toronto’s Somali communities to establish a dedicated cultural and recreational hub. In July 2022, Toronto City Council unanimously endorsed the project and directed City divisions and CreateTO to support partnerships and a feasibility assessment. In April 2024, City Council confirmed a site for the project and approved next steps to pursue provincial and federal funding and to integrate affordable housing into the development.
With this mandate in place, SCCR is focused on strengthening its internal capacity to deliver affordable housing alongside the community centre. With support from the Centre’s Sector Transformation Fund – Local Projects (STF–L), the organization is investing in organizational infrastructure, expanding outreach, and coordinating partnerships with the City of Toronto and private-sector partners to support the next phases of development.
Key components of the project include:
- Organizational capacity for planning and development
Strengthening internal capacity to manage planning and development, including financial planning, project management, staff development, and governance structures to support coordinated and accountable delivery. - Community engagement and participation
Supporting an inclusive engagement process throughout planning and development, using consultations and feedback mechanisms to ensure the project reflects community priorities and remains responsive over time.
The project is designed as a multifunctional development that brings together affordable housing with cultural, recreational, and educational spaces. By aligning housing delivery with cultural and community spaces, the project positions SCCR to move forward with a complex, integrated development shaped by long-standing community priorities.
Reducing risk through due diligence and moving to construction
Akoma Holdings—Westphal, Nova Scotia
Akoma Holdings is an organization rooted in historic African Nova Scotian communities, with a mandate focused on stewarding assets to create economic and social opportunities. Its work includes advancing housing and land-based initiatives that support long-term community development in historically Black communities across Nova Scotia.
Akoma Holdings is advancing an affordable housing development in Lake Loon, part of the historic Preston Township, home to African Nova Scotian communities with more than 400 years of history. African Nova Scotians are the largest racially visible group in Nova Scotia, yet many communities continue to face long-standing barriers related to land security, zoning, and access to municipal services.
The early phase of the project focused on site assessment and feasibility work to determine whether the land could support non-profit housing before acquisition and construction. With planning and pre-development support from the Centre’s Nova Scotia Black Community Housing Fund (NS-BCHF), Akoma Holdings worked with consultants to assess zoning, servicing, environmental conditions, and development readiness.
Key components of the project include:
- Design and feasibility assessment
Preparation of a design brief outlining zoning requirements, housing typology, and potential unit count to guide project planning. - Site and infrastructure analysis
Completion of surveys, soil testing, environmental assessments, and servicing analysis, including septic planning and municipal compliance. - Development readiness
Preparation of design concepts, cost estimates, schedules, grading plans, and permit-ready documentation to support informed decision-making.
This work was guided by a community-based development committee and supported by partnerships and planning consultants.
In October 2025, construction began on eight rental homes for working families in Lake Loon, supported by nearly $5 million in combined federal, provincial, and municipal funding.
The project progressed from feasibility and site readiness to construction, reflecting a careful and sequenced approach to community-led housing development in a historic African Nova Scotian community.
Learn more
If your organization is working on similar community projects, learn more about how the Centre’s funding programs, services and resources can help build organizational readiness and support early-stage community housing development.
