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Want to learn how to graft fruit trees?
Saturday, July 25th from 10 am-noon we are hosting a workshop in collaboration with Folk U on fruit tree grafting at the Rainbow Ridge Community Orchard.
Summer Tours & Trail Closures
Are you curious to see what’s happening at Rainbow Ridge? We will be offering tours every Friday this summer from 2-4 pm.
Video of Rainbow Ridge
There’s lots happening at Rainbow Ridge this spring. Duplex 1 is nearing completion, and we will be welcoming our first two families this summer. Duplex 2 is close to lock up, and we have started the foundation for Duplex 3.
Interested in natural building techniques?
Friday, May 8th from 9am-noon we are hosting a workshop on chip slip natural building at Rainbow Ridge (965 Beesley Rd).
Photos from Community Orchard Planting
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Earth Day orchard planting celebration and permaculture workshop. Together, we planted 35 fruit trees and enjoyed hands-on activities like building birdhouses and creating wildflower seed bombs with Autumn Barrett-Morgan.
What did we achieve in 2025?
We are pleased to report that 2025/26 was a banner year for our organization and for housing initiatives on Cortes, and we are seeing the culmination of several years of hard work coming to fruition.
Welcome to the Cortes Wood Makerspace!
Our community makerspace is up and running with 20 members so far. It is an incredible workshop with a great assortment of tools, including a kiln on loan from Ellingsen Woods and a planer/moulder for making tongue & groove boards.
Results of the 2026 Cortes Housing Survey
Drumroll please… Here are the results of the 2026 Housing Survey. Thank you to the hundreds of people who took the time to answer our questions!
Exploring New Ways to Support Housing on Cortes
Over the past few years, the Cortes Housing Society (CHS) has been working with the community on local housing challenges — from building homes at Rainbow Ridge to hosting forums, surveys, and conversations that bring many voices together.
What are your housing needs? Please complete this survey.
Two years ago we worked with Cortes Island’s Regional Director, Mark Vonesch, to create a housing survey to help us understand the challenges that people face, the reality of housing on Cortes, and how our local government and housing society can have a positive impact.
Community Housing on Cortes Becomes a Reality
We have made big progress at Rainbow Ridge in the last few months. Our Community Building is finished, and we are now using the space to run our office. The building is powered entirely by solar energy while we wait for BC Hydro to complete their design.
Explore the Trades Directory
Connecting residents with local professionals for home improvement, construction, landscaping and more, making it easy to find recommended services in the region.
Explore the Trades Directory
Connecting residents with local professionals for home improvement, construction, landscaping and more, making it easy to find recommended services in the region.
What You Can Do
Three ways you can help.
Stay Informed
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up-to-date with our latest news, events and community activities.
Get Involved
Come to our Open Houses & Forums, follow our Speaker Series, and contribute to our Trades Directory.
Donate
Help fund our housing projects and initiatives
with a monthly or one-time donation.
Thank you to our 2023/24 $10K+ funders
And the hundreds of Cortes residents that support our work on an ongoing basis
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