The Chilliwack
Progress Wednesday
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He’s Back
Boots
Riding
Frosty the wayward snowman returned.
Boot drive puts the right foot forward.
Blazing a trail in brand-new sport.
News
News
Sports
Y O U R C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R • F O U N D E D I N 1 8 9 1 • W W W. T H E P R O G R E S S . C O M • W E D N E S D AY, D E C E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 1 4
Modest growth expected in Chilliwack housing market Jennifer Feinberg The Progress Chilliwack’s housing market will continue to chug along in 2015, although condo prices may remain a little flat. A sense of consumer confidence and a mini construction boom on the south side are reasons cited for the modest growth predicted for Chilliwack, in the 2015 Housing Market Outlook Report released by REMAX. The average residential price in Chilliwack inched up to an estimated $307,000 in 2014 — an increase of three per cent over the previous year. The average price is a composite of all housing forms from single family homes to condos. One trend Chilliwack is expected to continue to benefit from is the migration into the Fraser Valley by former or retiring Vancouverites looking for real estate deals and decent quality of life. The Market Outlook released last week compares 2014 national prices and sales activity, and unveils a 2015 forecast for 32 regions across Canada, including Chilliwack. Unit sales rose 15 per cent to 2,395 sales in 2014 from 2,074 in 2013, with September and October seeing a lot of activity. For 2015, house sales are expected to increase six to 10 per cent, and the average price is expected to rise three to four per cent to $317,750. “That is almost exactly what we were projecting for sales and prices,” said Jake Siemens, president of Chilliwack and District Real Estate Board. “It’s a fairly stable market with interest rates also expected to remain low.” There does seem to be a trend forming, he said, with a shift from a buyer’s market to a seller’s market, as prices increase modestly. As the market started heating up Continued: HOUSING/ p5
Dozens of people volunteered their time to help out with Food Mob, a drive-through fundraiser for the Salvation Army at the Sally Ann’s warehouse on Brooks Avenue Saturday afternoon. In just two hours, Chilliwack residents donated 18,000 non-perishable food items, plus $2,800, to help those in need. JENNA HAUCK/ PROGRESS
Chilliwack in ‘fine form’ at first food mob Jennifer Feinberg The Progress The Sally Ann warehouse is certainly a lot more full than it was last week. The first ever Chilliwack Food Mob was a roaring success, with organizers already thinking about next year. The community came out in droves on Dec. 13, with donations to help sustain the Food Bank run by the Chilliwack Salvation Army. “We had a fantastic day,” said Food Band organizer Chris Reitsma. “We had tons of traffic and people were in fine form.”
They collected 18,000 non perishable food items, and packed them into hundreds of banana boxes. Cash donations totalled about $2,800. The Food Mob had a convenient drive-through system at the location outside the Salvation Army facility on Brooks Avenue that allowed two streams of traffic to make things run smoothly. “We really didn’t know what to expect,” said Reitsma. It was all over within a two-hour period on Saturday afternoon, and the results are impressive. The idea for the first ever Chilliwack Food Mob on Dec.
13 was to benefit the Chilliwack Salvation Army Food Bank, using the hash tag #foodmob on social media. It was a Progress article, with a photo of an empty warehouse that turned out to be the catalyst for creating the Food Mob. “I saw that article. I looked at the picture of the warehouse and I couldn’t get it out of my mind,” said Reitsma a few weeks ago. It caught on and people showed up to make it happen. “I knew people would respond. But I couldn’t predict the volume,” he admitted. A Facebook page set up by
Kevin Schroeder went a long way toward helping get people energized about it as well, he added. Some arrived at the Food Mob with trunk loads of food and cash. Others showed up in teams to volunteer. Many people appreciated having somewhere central to contribute, and praised the event. “It was fantastic. There were smiles all around,” added Reitsma. There are rumblings about making it an annual event. “All signs pointed to yes!” he said. jfeinberg@theprogress.com twitter.com/chwkjourno
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