Communities Speak: A Summary of the 2009 Provincial Housing Consultations, reflects government-led consultations held between June and November with housing providers, tenants, agency staff, private landlords, and low-income people in housing need. It summarizes core conclusions of those consultations with 40 recommendations for the provincial government to enact.

“Ontarians have spoken: the province must take bold action to resolve Ontario’s housing crisis,” says Yutaka Dirks, Co-chair of HNO.

“Acting on the expert recommendations of people who are living this crisis, like the ones in this report, will be key to moving forward on housing and it has the added advantage of addressing some of Ontario’s core economic challenges.”

The report calls on the provincial government to invest in a plan to build more affordable housing, to repair existing public housing, and ensure more Ontarians in need have access to affordable housing when they need it.

“Resolving Ontario’s housing crisis isn’t just a matter of bricks and mortar,” says Harvey Cooper, Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, Ontario. “The recommendations in this report provide guidance in a wide range of policy areas. Bold leadership in these areas will not only start to address housing affordability, but also help Ontario reach its target of a 25% reduction in poverty by 2013.

“Thousands of people have come to community meetings to let politicians know what they must do to properly address the enormous affordable housing need in Ontario. This report brings all their input together, and we expect government to act on these recommendations,” said Dirks.

The HNO will be releasing its own submission to the government’s consultation process in early December. Over 450 organizations and individuals have endorsed the HNO Declaration.

TORONTO, June 3 – The Housing Network of Ontario welcomes the Ontario Government’s announcement today of public consultations to develop a new long term affordable housing strategy for Ontario.

“The high cost of housing is the single biggest expense for low, moderate and even middle-income people across the province, and Ontario has the highest housing costs in Canada,” says Michael Shapcott, Director of Affordable Housing for the Wellesley Institute and one of the founding partners of the Housing Network of Ontario. “Addressing the need for affordable housing must be a key part of Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy if the government is to meet its target of cutting child and family poverty by 25% by 2013. So we’re pleased to see that the Ontario government will begin public consultations this June and a new long term affordable housing strategy for Ontario will be announced early next year.”

“This is an historic opportunity. Ontario has never had a comprehensive provincial housing plan – we’ve been waiting for decades for this commitment. There are over 160,000 households on the wait list for affordable housing in Ontario, and 1 in every 5 tenant households are spending more than 50% of their income on rent. With the economic downturn making this situation even tougher now is the time for people to let our government know what we need for a provincial plan that assures stable and affordable homes for all,” said Sharad Kerur, Executive Director, Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association.

“Communities across Ontario have been eagerly awaiting these public meetings to talk about the housing crisis and what the provincial government needs to do. The Housing Network of Ontario is calling for Ontario’s Long-term Affordable Housing Strategy to address four priorities: affordability measures to increase the supply and make existing housing more affordable; availability of well-maintained housing that addresses the diversity of community needs; supports, programs and protections that help all Ontarians equitably access and maintain affordable housing; and a clear way to measure progress, to ensure that housing insecurity and homelessness are being reduced,” said Yutaka Dirks, of the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario.

The government announcement states that Housing Minister Jim Watson will hold consultations in 12 communities between June – September. MPPs are being encouraged to hold consultations in their ridings before December 2009. People can provide input via a government website or by calling 1-877-224-7271. Full information about the upcoming consultations, including resources and links, is available at http://stableandaffordable.com.

“The 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction calls on all MPPs to hold consultation meetings in their ridings to get input for Ontario’s new Long Term Affordable Housing Strategy. We will be working with our partners across Ontario to ensure that MPPs listen to the community and hold meetings beyond the 12 communities that Minister Watson will be visiting,” said Jacquie Maund, Coordinator of Ontario Campaign 2000.
“And while the government is consulting, low income people in Ontario need to see progress on spending the $600 million for housing construction and retrofit that was committed in the March Ontario budget.”

The Housing Network of Ontario includes anti-poverty activists, homelessness groups, social housing advocates, equity and human rights groups, non-profit organizations, tenants and others working to ensure the provincial government delivers an integrated and fully-funded affordable housing strategy. www.stableandaffordable.com
The Housing Network of Ontario is linked to the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction, over 450 organizations across Ontario working to eliminate poverty in the province. www.25in5.ca

Media contacts:
Michael Shapcott, cell 416-605-8316
Sharad Kerur 416-927-9144×102
Yutaka Dirks, 416-416-592-5855×5243
Jacquie Maund 416-595-9230×241