Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner is calling on the province to build 100,000 affordable rental homes over the next decade, among other measures to address what he calls an "affordable housing crisis that has reached a breaking point."
Schreiner tabled a motion Wednesday containing core elements the $23.5 billion housing strategy the Greens released in June. Those include:
- Building 100,000 new affordable homes
- Extending financial support to 311,000 Ontarians for housing costs
- Building 60,000 supportive housing units with mental health and addictions supports
- Creating a $100 million seed fund for co-operative housing
- Leasing of publicly-owned land to housing providers
- Expanding inclusionary zoning to apply to all new housing projects
Citing the recent auditor general's report which indicates average wait times for social housing in Ontario range from two months to almost 12 years depending on municipality, Schreiner said "trying to help people on that wait list find a place to call home" is "one of the biggest issues" his constituency office in Guelph deals with.
In October, GuelphToday reported the demand for social housing in Guelph and Wellington County was on the rise with people who received housing between June 2020 and June of 2021 having waited an average of 2.1 years.
"Every night sadly 9,600 Ontarians experience visible homelessness," said Schreiner, adding that number jumps to 90,000 people annually with many more experiencing so-called "invisible homelessness."
"It's not sustainable, it's not right and it has to change," Schreiner continued. "Unfortunately things are only getting worse, housing costs and rent continue to skyrocket as the government fails to act."
Asked what he would do to improve housing affordability during a stop in Guelph in November, Premier Doug Ford said the process of granting permits to builders needs to be "streamlined."
"This goes back to the municipalities that issue the permits...some buildings can take four to six years to get moving," Ford said, adding costs from those delays are passed on to home-buyers.
The province is working with municipalities to improve the process, said Ford.
Meanwhile Schreiner said there are a number of supportive housing projects in Guelph — including a 32-unit building on Willow Road and projects on Woolwich Street and Wyndham Street — which have approvals but lack provincial funding.
"The federal government has put money on the table and we're calling on the provincial government to put money on the table as well," he said.
"Most of our deeply affordable housing stock was built in the 1970s and 80s, and starting in the 90s, both the federal and provincial governments pulled out of the housing game and the crisis has been getting steadily worse since then and now it's reached a breaking point."
A date for when Schreiner's motion will be voted on has not been set, but he said he hopes to see the provincial government put money toward some of its initiatives in the next provincial budget.
