The federal andOntario government made their latest announcement about new affordable housing allocations on Friday. This brings to ten the number of major federal-provincial announcements on this program, which was launched in November of 2001. Among the announcements:
– the feds and Ontario have signed not one, but two housingagreementsto get money flowing and homes built,
– the feds and Ontario have made three allocation announcements, and three other announcements promising that they are committed to the program.
Friday’s announcement includes 43 project allocations. At least 11 ” or more than one-quarter of today’s announcements ” have been previously announced, including all ten Toronto projects.
Under the projected schedule adopted in 2005, this program is supposed to generate 9,761 new units in the three years from 2006 to 2009 (6,146 affordable rental units, defined as units that rent at the average market rent of private rental units; and 3,615 affordable ownership units, defined as units where the ownership costs are no more than the average private market rent) plus 4,900 housing allowances (which may be in the new units or in existing housing).
All in all, it amounts to a lot of announcements for remarkably few units.
The Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association estimates that there are 122,426 households on active affordable housing waiting lists in Ontario. Statistics Canada reports that 266,000 Ontario households are paying 50% or more of their income on rent.
– Michael Shapcott