Housing is becoming less affordable for the vulnerable in Barrie despite the efforts of all involved, city councillors were told this week.
Jennifer van Gennip, from the Barrie chapter of the Simcoe County Alliance to End Homelessness, said it supports the city staff affordable housing monitoring report and the affordable housing recommendations made in it — but the city has a homelessness crisis.
“When advised by staff the 840 units of affordable housing target had been surpassed, technically, we were wary of how council and staff might frame it,” said van Gennip, who made a deputation to council Monday night. “Frankly, we were watching to see if there would be a lot of back-patting for hitting the target early, and we haven’t seen any of that.
“What we are seeing from both staff and council is an understanding that regardless of hitting this target (840) it made six years ago, the average renter looking for an affordable option in Barrie is worse off today than they were then,” she said.
Barrie’s affordable housing strategy set a goal of 840 new affordable housing units by 2025; the strategy’s purpose is to encourage, stimulate and increase the supply and range of affordable housing options to meet the needs of residents at all income levels and stages of life. As of Dec. 31, 2020, there was a cumulative total of 872 affordable housing units in Barrie.
Most of the city’s affordable housing units are second suites, while only 14 per cent are units in new, affordable rental developments.
But the cost of renting second suites is increasing and, based on the County of Simcoe’s approach, only 25 per cent of second suites built in 2020 are assumed to be affordable. This percentage has changed over time and if 25 per cent was applied, the number of new affordable units would drop to 619.
Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman also said there’s a housing crisis.
“Although there have been gains in affordable housing, there is still much work to be done,” he said in a city news release. “Barrie is experiencing a housing affordability crisis and the ability to find homes for the hardest to house in our community remains a challenge.
“The city is committed to working together with community partners to increase housing options and affordability," he added.
Van Gennip pointed to studies across several jurisdictions showing that for every $100 a month of increase in median rent, homelessness increased between 15 and 39 per cent.
She said one of the biggest global threats to affordable housing stock is mom-and-pop landlords selling to institutional investors, such as pension funds and real estate investment trusts, resulting in much higher rent.
“It’s part of a global trend, the financialization of housing,” van Gennip said. “And the pandemic could lead to more smaller-scale landlords putting rental properties up for sale because they could be less able than a corporation to withstand tenants defaulting on rent.”
She said the city’s review of its Official Plan (OP) must address affordable housing.
“We understand that the city cannot redefine affordable housing for the purposes of the OP,” van Gennip said. “However, our position is that setting a target for only 10 per cent of the housing to be affordable for… approximately 60 per cent of the population of Barrie… this will always be a problem and it would suggest an Official Plan that is centred on what is best for investors rather than residents.”
According to the alliance’s 2018 homeless enumeration, 70 per cent of those experiencing homelessness in the community are single adults.
“We need deeply affordable small apartment options for single people; we could also use some policies that make co-housing easier,” van Gennip said.
City council has approved a staff review of the current affordable housing strategy with the preparation of a report card and having staff report back with interim recommendations to the strategy.
Barrie also has an affordable housing task force to co-ordinate Simcoe County, Barrie and charitable/not-for-profit housing projects and policies, to aggressively expand the supply of affordable housing, with particular emphasis on addressing the hardest to house.
More than $1.7 million in affordable housing development grants was awarded in 2020 under the city’s new community improvement plan for future affordable housing units. The city also exceeded the Official Plan goal for 10 per cent of all new dwelling units annually to be affordable in new subdivisions and condominiums, in 2018 and 2019.
The 2021 city budget includes $3 million for the proposed development of a supportive, modular housing project on Vespra Street.
In addition to reviewing the city’s current affordable housing strategy, preparing a report card and reporting to councillors with any recommended interim updates to the strategy, staff will participate in and provide technical support — mapping, feasibility, expertise — to the affordable housing task force to aggressively expand the supply of affordable housing with the particular emphasis on addressing the hardest to house.
Staff will also develop a policy and mechanism for collecting cash contributions in lieu of affordable housing units in development applications and report back to councillors.
All applicable city fees, including planning and building services application fees and associated legal and administrative fees for qualifying affordable housing projects, will be waived as of Jan. 1, 2021.
The definition of ‘affordable’ used in the affordable housing strategy to establish the benchmark for measuring the number of affordable housing units in Barrie is what’s used in the Provincial Policy Statement and the city’s Official Plan.
In the case of ownership, it’s the least expensive of housing for which the purchase price results in annual accommodation costs which don’t exceed 30 per cent of gross annual household income for low- and moderate-income households, or housing with a purchase price at least 10 per cent below the average purchase price of a resale unit in the regional market area.
In the case of rental housing, it’s the least expensive of a unit for which the rent does not exceed 30 per cent of gross annual household income for low- and moderate-income households, or a unit with rent at or below the average market rent of a unit in the regional market area.
The County of Simcoe is the designated service manager for Barrie according to the Housing Services Act, 2011, so the county is responsible for planning, funding and managing social housing programs and homelessness services.
The city can encourage and facilitate the provisions of affordable housing through initiatives, programs and policies but it does not provide or manage housing.
