There is a shortage of commercial space and community gathering spaces on Cortes Island. As a result, some small businesses have been unable to start up, forced to close or obliged to repurpose substandard housing for commercial purposes. A previously supported ICET project, the Cortes Community Economic Development Association (CCEDA) Local Economic Plan, addresses the need for new commercial space as top priority for the community’s economic well-being.

The project, led by the CCEDA, will develop a plan to create a new community owned commercial development, on 2.6 acres of property stewarded to the group in 2018 and situated in the heart of Cortes’ community centre, Mason’s Landing. The long-term plan for the facility will include commercial space, enhance food security and create new community gathering uses within a social enterprise model.
Project works will include community engagement to refine demand and opportunity. The second phase will be to translate the community vision and commercial opportunity into a feasible concept design and related operational planning documents, required access senior government sources of infrastructure funding, as well as other market-based sources of financing.