Affordable Housing: Growth That Works for Everyone
From the People. For the People.
I am running for Mayor because I believe City Hall should work for the people who live here, not for special interests.
I am not owned by developers, corporations, or powerful interests. I am running as a democratic socialist who believes that as Ottawa grows, the people of Ottawa should benefit from that growth.
Affordable Housing Cannot Be Optional
Using Growth to Keep Ottawa Livable
Ottawa needs development. We need new apartments, new homes, new businesses and new investment. Developers should be able to build successful projects and make a reasonable profit.
But when major residential developments are being built and hundreds of new units are being added to our city, affordable housing should be part of that growth.
As Mayor, I will work with Council to require the strongest affordable-housing set-asides legally available for major new residential developments.
Under current Ontario rules, municipalities can require up to 5% affordable housing in eligible developments within protected major transit station areas. I will push Ottawa to use that authority instead of leaving affordable housing at zero.
Where provincial legislation prevents Ottawa from going further, I will work with the Province to expand the City’s authority so that more major developments across Ottawa can include a meaningful percentage of permanently or long-term affordable homes.
If You Build Big, Give Something Back
My principle is simple:
If a major development is going to benefit from Ottawa’s growth, infrastructure, transit, services and increasing land values, part of that development should help keep Ottawa affordable.
Affordable units should not be hidden away or treated as second-class housing. They should be integrated into developments and built to the same basic standards as the other homes in the building.
Development and affordability do not have to be enemies. We can build more housing while making sure working families, seniors, young people and lower-income residents still have a place in our city.
Build More Affordable and Community Housing
Requiring affordable units in private developments is only one part of the solution.
My administration will also work with the federal and provincial governments, non-profit housing providers and community organizations to increase the construction of affordable, supportive and community housing.
I will support using suitable City-owned land for affordable housing, speeding up approvals for genuinely affordable projects and looking for partnerships that allow public land to create long-term public benefit.
Housing Is Part of the Solution to Homelessness
We cannot seriously address homelessness without addressing housing.
When rents rise faster than people’s incomes and affordable homes disappear, more residents are pushed toward housing insecurity, shelters and homelessness.
That puts pressure on shelters, emergency services, hospitals, police, outreach organizations and taxpayers.
Building and protecting affordable housing is therefore not only a housing policy. It is part of a homelessness strategy, a public-safety strategy and a responsible-spending strategy.
Instead of waiting until someone loses their home and then spending more money responding to the crisis, we should work to prevent that crisis from happening in the first place.
