Dovercourt Housing Co-Operative Inc

What you should know about Dovercourt Housing Co-Operative Inc

Dovercourt Housing Co-operative (founded 1984) is a family-oriented, non-profit co-operative in Ottawa’s Westboro neighbourhood, located near Carling Ave and Kirkwood Ave. The co-op comprises 40 units organized in three clusters: 28 units on Molenaar Private, 4 on Tweedsmuir Street near Dovercourt Ave, and 8 on Hendricus Private. Unit types include two-, three- and four-bedroom houses; most units include an on-site parking spot and a fenced backyard. The co-op reports three wheelchair-accessible two-bedroom units and one wheelchair-accessible one-bedroom unit. As of the webpage posting, the waiting list is closed and the co-op is not accepting new applications. Governance and member responsibilities follow standard cooperative principles. Dovercourt operates under federal jurisdiction with democratic decision-making: members elect a Board of Directors, which delegates work to standing committees. The listed committees are Membership, Maintenance, Finance, Subsidy (noting no subsidized spaces currently available), Social and Parking. All members must contribute a minimum of four hours of volunteer labour (typically committee service or board work) and participate in semi-annual yard work events. Members are expected to attend general and special meetings to stay informed and to vote on cooperative business; the co-op cites member participation as a mechanism to keep operating costs low. Application, selection and offer procedures are described on the site. Initial application processing (including credit checks) is said to take about one to three months from submission to Board decision and placement on the waiting list. Prospective members attend an interview with two to three Membership Committee members that assesses understanding of co-op living and community contribution; responses are recorded for Board review. When membership is approved, names are added to the waiting list and offers are made in order of application date. Applicants receive approximately two months’ notice when a unit becomes available; the site explains current members give 70 days’ notice and those on the waiting list should expect roughly 60–69 days’ notice. At the time of posting, the site indicates typical waiting times for an offer are about two years and one month. Current housing charges listed on the site are: $1,015 for a one‑bedroom, $1,106 for a two‑bedroom, $1,182 for a three‑bedroom, and $1,273 for a four‑bedroom unit. The Westboro location provides broad local amenities within roughly 2 km—retail, grocery options, malls, medical services, multiple parks and recreation centres, public transit links and several elementary and secondary schools. Contact details published: 25 Molenaar Pvt, Ottawa ON K1Z 8S4; email dhcmembership@gmail.com.