The city is now focusing on so-called micro loft housing, or small prefabricated units that could be put on a new roof that the building needs anyway.
City Manager Kevin Cormack says they would meet the low cost entry purchase level or rental market that’s been identified as a priority.
Micro loft units can be just over 300 square feet and have sold for about $100,000 in the Lower Mainland.
The city would commission a geotechnical report on the Youth Centre site as well as a market analysis so that work doesn’t need to be done by a developer.