[homeles_ot-l] FW: 'Made-in-Ontario' housing plan needs targets, timelines, funding... and inclusionary housing- WI backgrounder

[Lynne Browne]

FYI . . . Lynne Browne

Coordinator, Alliance to End Homelessness 

613-241-7913 ext. 205

lbrowne at ysb.on.ca <mailto:lbrowne at ysb.on.ca> 

147 Besserer St., Ottawa, ON K1N 6A7

www.endhomelessnessottawa.ca <http://www.endhomelessnessottawa.ca> 

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________________________________

From: Michael Shapcott [mailto:Michael at wellesleyinstitute.com] 
Sent: March 24, 2011 12:01 PM
To: Michael Shapcott
Subject: WI backgrounder: 'Made-in-Ontario' housing plan needs targets,
timelines, funding... and inclusionary housing

 

The Ontario Legislature should amend Bill 140
<http://www.ontla.on.ca/web/bills/bills_detail.do?locale=en&Intranet=&Bi
llID=2440> - draft legislation to ensure all Ontarians are adequately
housed - to make sure that municipalities can create locally-appropriate
inclusionary housing plans
<http://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/blog/affordable-housing-blog/an-easy-
guide-to-creating-healthy-inclusive-neighbourhoods-with-a-good-mix-of-ho
using/> , and the bill should also be amended to require the provincial
housing minister to develop a real housing plan for Ontario
<http://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/blog/affordable-housing-blog/made-in-
ontario-affordable-housing-plan-urgently-required-written-brief-to-provi
ncial-housing-minister/> , with real targets, timelines and funding
mechanisms. Those are the key recommendations in a submission
<http://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/download/452/> that the Wellesley
Institute's Michael Shapcott gave to the Ontario Standing Committee on
Justice Policy today as it reviewed the bill.

 

Fully 630,000 Ontario households are officially in "core housing need"
as defined by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Almost 142,000
households are on affordable housing waiting lists. The affordable
housing needs of Ontarians are complex and diverse, and poor housing is
a critical factor in driving poor individual health and poor population
health. Ontario has the highest housing costs, the lowest per capita
investment in housing and has made the biggest download of housing
responsibilities to municipalities of any Canadian province.

 

For most of the past two decades, Ontario's housing policy has been
dictated by federal politicians. When the national government cuts and
downloads housing (as it did in 1993 and 1996 respectively), the Ontario
government follows suit (in 1995 and 1998). When the federal government
makes one-time, short-term housing investments (in 2001, 2006 and 2009),
the Ontario government cost-shares (although sometimes taking a year or
more to catch up). In recent years, Ontario has taken important steps in
affordable housing programs and funding, but "none of these initaitives
is sufficient to meet the housing needs of Ontarians, and all of them
together do not add up to a comprehensive, long-term affordable housing
plan for the province" - notes the WI submission.

 

The Wellesley Institute supports a recommendations for amendments to the
draft legislation by a number of our housing partners. In our
submission, we identified two critical priorities:

*	first, amend Bill 140 to amend the Planning Act to ensure
municipalities have the power to enact locally appropriate inclusionary
housing policies <http://www.inclusionaryhousing.ca/> .
*	second, amend Bill 140 to require the provincial government to
create a comprehensive, 'made-in-Ontario' affordable housing plan to
meet the housing needs and respect the housing rights of Ontarians
<http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/issues/housing> .

 

 

< note: the on-line version of this backgrounder, with links to the full
WI submission and other background materials, is here:

http://www.wellesleyinstitute.com/blog/affordable-housing-blog/made-in-o
ntario-housing-plan-needs-real-targets-timelines-and-inclusionary-housin
g-bill-140-submission/  >

 

 

***

 

Michael Shapcott | Director, Affordable Housing and Social Innovation |
Wellesley Institute 

45 Charles St E, Suite 101                    Tel: 416.972.1010 ext 231
Toronto, ON, Canada,  M4Y 1S2           Mobile: 416.605.8316  
E-mail:   michael at wellesleyinstitute.com

 

www.wellesleyinstitute.com

rigorous research. pragmatic policy solutions. social innovation.
community action.

 

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