City wise to expand social housing

The City of Peterborough will add $56 million worth of apartments and homeless shelter space to its social housing portfolio if three projects coming to city council on Monday are approved.

Councillors will have to decide if such a major expansion and the risks involved are manageable.

Renovation of the vacant McCrae building on McDonnel St. and construction of a new six-storey building at the former Fleming College property is the biggest investment. The city would take on $24.5 million in debt to create 119 apartments for single mothers and seniors.

But the well-documented project carries little risk. A staff report shows rents should cover annual payments on a 30-year loan and produce a $400,000-a-year cushion.

City taxpayers would contribute $1.5 million toward upfront costs and get badly needed low-cost housing units in return. Twenty units would be dedicated for frail elderly people now living at Peterborough Regional Health Centre, freeing up hospital beds for the sick and injured.

The other two projects council will consider contain elements of surprise.

Replacing the Brock Mission shelter has been planned for several years; the surprise is that the city now plans to own the shelter.

A new three-storey building will have 15 rental rooms and 30 overnight beds. The city originally was to contribute $1.65 million in cash and fee waivers. Brock Mission would have taken a mortgage to finance the bulk of the $8 million project.

Now the mission would transfer ownership to the city, which would borrow $3.8 million to help cover construction costs. Brock Mission would continue to operate the shelter under contract.

One potential concern is that the financing plan includes a $1 million fundraising campaign, presumably run by Brock Mission. Should the campaign fall short taxpayers would have to make up the difference.

Project 3 comes out of the blue. The city is proposing to take over Sunshine Homes, a 110-unit non-profit townhouse complex on Crystal Dr.

The Sunshine Homes property is valued at $8.5 million but comes with $3.5 million in debt. The non-profit corporation was forced into receivership 12 years ago. It has climbed back to financial stability but its past indicates an element of risk.

Peterborough Housing Corp., the city’s non-profit housing arm, would manage all three facilities. That’s a 35-per-cent increase to the1,000 units PHC now controls.

The city would be taking on $31 million in new “non-tax supported debt” – debt that is paid off through sources other than property taxes.

That will leave just $15 million for similar financing in the future and could constrain other worthy projects.

On the whole, however, the relatively small risks are worth the benefit of more, and better managed, social housing.