included in the report and what are the bricks and mortar builds that are directly tied to the municipality. K. Goz questions what the Councillor means by “bricks and mortar builds” and asks if it is tied to incentives and CIP’s.
Councillor McKenzie states that we are supporting a number of different groups and organizations that are providing affordable housing across the community. When we’re talking about new builds that the city is responsible for, if we’re going to reach the goal of 10,000 units, the city has to build some.
K. Goz advises that the target identified in the Master Plan speaks to increasing the number of households assisted in either RGI, affordable rental housing units and/or rent assisted units by 30% by 2028.
J. Zuk advises that perhaps the distinction that Councillor McKenzie is looking for is the difference between overall units and actual stock and how we add it to the actual build that is either owned by the City of Windsor or is under contract being maintained as affordable housing. It is a contentious point because it is important to track rent supplements as currently, that is the only vehicle that we have had to create those affordable units given that buildings are not happening and we do not have inclusionary zoning.
F. Coughlin remarks she would like to see an increase in the number of new units whether it is through the rent subsidies of through new builds. The City does partner with Habitat for Humanity on their builds and these new units are included in the data on the 2019 annual report.
Mayor McNamara asks Administration if the private sector is included in qualifying for affordable housing. K. Goz responds that known investments of rental housing capital dollars in 2019 were included in the report. Future reports can depict the net increases of the number of units and dollars invested in Windsor Essex annually. In any of the Provincial/Federal capital programs delivered by Housing Services, there has been a requirement for municipalities to consent to participation in these programs, the City of Windsor has historically participated in every rental capital program back to 2007.
Mayor McNamara suggests that if we are going to meet targets over a period of time, that perhaps a chart that outlines what has transpired the year before and what is coming up over the next few years would be helpful.
D. Cercone advises that a template/report can be created and sent out to the municipal planning and building departments to collect information about affordable housing built by the private sector, i.e. three years would be a good benchmark and bring it back to HHAC.
J. Binder states as Windsor-Essex is a large community, to look at the spectrum of housing as a need and where it is being filled, i.e. CMHC is looking at many developers that may be offering different levels of affordability.