THUNDER BAY – City staff on Monday will seek approval from council to green-light a plan to distribute Thunder Bay’s $20.7-million share of the federal housing accelerator fund.
The city intends to use the money – the full share of which is conditional on both the implementation of an approved action plan and, secondly, hitting its growth targets – to encourage not-for-profit organizations to build affordable rental housing.
The city had initially asked Ottawa for $45 million under the fund.
According to the report, expected to be delivered to council on May 6 during committee of the whole deliberations, affordable units are not being developed fast enough to meet demand. The multi-unit and affordable housing incentive would allow for the sale of surplus city-owned land and to maximize residential unit density by encouraging developers to add additional units to already planned developments.
A second initiative would encourage additional dwelling units, such as backyard homes, aimed at creating 187 new units, while another is a vacant commercial development incentive that would allow for the construction of residential units above the first storey of commercial buildings.
Residential infill will be sought through the core areas' community improvement plans, the goal to add housing in key areas of Thunder Bay’s multiple downtowns, including Westfort, Port Arthur, and Fort William.
Other initiatives include identifying areas where housing isn’t being built due to urban sprawl, where officials believe another 151 units could go, and conducting a vacant land assessment and conversion program aimed at creating space for 100 permitted units.
The report recommends council approve the affordable rental housing funding program and fund the program to a maximum of $1.5 million in 2024.
The overall goal is to fast-track the development of construction of more than 600 new housing units over the next three years, to reach a total of 1,691 new permitted homes by February 2027.
Project manager Summer Stevenson said the city has set eligibility criteria and is encouraging not-for-profit organizations to get the ball rolling on new affordable housing.
“It has to be a new construction project. The policy will also include a matrix with how we will be evaluating these applications, with a preference for projects that encourage deeper levels of affordability and sustainability,” Stevenson said.
“At a minimum, applicants will have to put forward a project that has at least 30 per cent of all new units designated affordable, with affordable referring to 80 per cent of the average market rent for our region.”
According to CMHC’s 2023 report, monthly rent would have to range between $658 for a bachelor apartment to $1,324 for a three-or-more bedroom unit, which last year averaged $1,628.
Building up the city’s downtown cores and encouraging more people to live in them is a big part of the plan, said the city’s Devon McCloskey, manager of planning services.
“There are many benefits to gain from intensification in the existing urban areas. There are benefits for those residents to have equitable access to services, to have less reliance on cars to move around, to be able to access existing service and infrastructure,” she said.
“Those are all important pieces.”
The plan would provide up to $20,000 for the creation of new single bedroom units and $30,000 for for two or more bedrooms, maxing out at no more than $100,000 per property.
Should council vote on Monday to approve the plan, the planning department would monitor its implementation between October and March and report back to council next April.
