Waterloo Region needs to build more affordable housing

Of all the needs that exist in Waterloo Region today, none is more urgent, none is more deeply felt, yet none more difficult to deliver than an affordable place to call home.

As this region grows ever richer, the prices of land, construction, real estate and rental units have soared ever higher. And in lock step, the number of people desperate for some kind of subsidized housing has soared, too.

While only a year or so ago there were 3,000 households on the waiting list for affordable housing, today that number has leapt to 4,178, and the amount of time those families and individuals are spending in the frustrating lineup has also increased.

Affordable housing is defined as housing that doesn’t cost more than 30 per cent of yearly income, or is at least 10 per cent below market rates.

The good news about affordable housing — and if you care about the health of this community you’ll applaud — is that local governments and developers are finding new, creative ways to help residents find a home.

The bad news is that we’re only chipping away at a mountain of a problem. And too many residents, succumbing to stale, inaccurate stereotypes, are still fighting tooth and nail against having new, affordable housing built near them.

Let’s start accentuating the positive: A major new residential development being built on King Street near the Kitchener Market will include affordable housing units subsidized by the developer, Drewlo. In return for permission from the city to increase density on the site, Drewlo will subsidize a number of apartments so people with lower incomes can afford them.

Getting affordable housing into the downtown on the light rail line is a smart move. People who need help paying their rent are more likely to use public transit. Moreover, having a mix of market-priced and subsidized units makes sense, too. This development won’t be seen or stigmatized as a subsidized housing enclave.

But this is only a baby step considering how far this region has to go. There will be 488 units in this project. Only eight to 10 of them will be affordable housing. That won’t scratch many names off the region’s waiting list.

A new project planned for the site of an old motel on Hespeler Road in Cambridge would do more — if hostile neighbours don’t somehow block it.

The developer, NHDG Hespeler Inc., wants to put up two buildings with 128 apartments. By agreeing to earmark 55 of these units for affordable housing, the developer will be eligible for provincial and federal funding while benefiting from other financial incentives from the regional and city governments.

Yet some neighbours don’t want this project approved. At a meeting this week, one woman complained the affordable housing units would lead to greater crime, drug use and more trash in her neighbourhood while depressing surrounding property values.

It’s understandable that homeowners want to protect their neighbourhood and, most likely, their greatest investment.

But they need to realize that by reducing financial pressures on people with lower incomes, affordable housing makes those lives easier. They can spend more on food, clothing and other basics. This strengthens families and communities, in the long run reducing the risks of crime or drug abuse. It’s also the morally right thing to do.

This year’s municipal elections offer a welcome opportunity for finding a new will and new ways to help people secure a home in Waterloo Region.

We need more affordable housing, not less, in our backyards.