Groups worried about funding for housing strategy
Stakeholders say federal government’s goals are good, but timelines are an issue
Politicians were in Edmonton Friday touting the benefits of the federal government’s first national housing strategy, but interested community stakeholders are concerned help may not be coming soon enough.
While the new national housing strategy includes a promise to renegotiate expiring agreements with housing co-operatives that would maintain the number and affordability of units, “I will want to see timelines, because I know that in between agreements it may be very difficult for some co-ops to continue to provide well for their membership,” said Mike Van Boom, a member of the Inn Roads Housing Co-operative, speaking after an announcement at the Boyle Street Community Plaza.
Federal Infrastructure and Communities Minister Amarjeet Sohi, Liberal MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods, said the new strategy is expected to stimulate $40 billion in housing investments over the next decade, but most of those funds won’t be available until after 2019.
“The national housing strategy represents ambitious federal leadership to ensure Canadians have access to housing that meets their needs and that they can afford,” Sohi said.
Goals of the strategy include reducing homelessness in Canada by 50 per cent, creating four times more federal housing units and renovating three times more units than were built and maintained by the federal government between 2005 and 2015, and protecting 385,000 households from losing an affordable place to live.
The “primary focus will be on meeting the needs of vulnerable populations,” including seniors, Indigenous people, survivors of family violence, people with disabilities, refugees, veterans and those experiencing homelessness, Sohi said.
“Canadians want better housing and better housing outcomes for those in greatest need,” said Edmonton-Centre Liberal MP Randy Boissonnault.
The strategy will ensure at least 25 per cent of the funding will be allocated to projects supporting women, girls and their families.
Jan Reimer, executive director of the Alberta Council of Women’s Shelters, said she is glad to see a specific focus on the housing needs of women, whom she said have been “invisible” for more than a decade.
Proposed support, such as an affordable housing benefit, could help women escape domestic violence, but the funds won’t be available until 2020, Reimer said.
“Women need subsidized housing because they are so very, very poor after they leave an abusive relationship,” said Reimer, calling for more details on “when things are coming into play and how.”