Spinning wheels

County affordable housing efforts yielding few results from millions spent

The plan seemed good. A municipal housing corporation appeared to have the potential to fill a need for affordable homes that the market couldn’t. Born in 2018, the promise was that it would attract private and public funds needed to build residential apartments for low-income families. At arm’s length from the municipality, it might be more successful in accessing pools of capital dedicated to affordable housing.

The municipal housing corporation model had been used to good effect in other communities. Perhaps it would work here, too.

It didn’t. The County’s housing corp never raised much money—not from investors, nor from governmental agencies, nor anyone else. Seven years later, the housing corp is adrift. It has no financial plan. It has burned through millions of dollars, with little to show for its efforts since 2018. An empty lot on Niles Street in Wellington and another on Disraeli Street in Picton. It has a lead on a possible developer for Disraeli Street, but it is nowhere in Wellington.

It’s time to wrap it up. It was a good idea. This newspaper was a big supporter of the concept. But it didn’t work. It’s time to wind up the housing corporation.

A meeting of the Affordable Housing Board on Monday revealed a project that has utterly lost its way. It has no revenue. It owes $675,000 to the municipality with no plan to pay it back. Its meagre capital consists of a loan from the County and a wee amount of loan and grant funding from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The Housing Corporation, combined with the County Housing Division burns about half a million dollars of cash each year. At this pace, it will run out of money in a few years.

The County’s finance director, Arryn McNichol, put on a brave face for the board in his first financial report since assuming the top finance job in the spring.

“I haven’t seen a financial plan,” reported McNichol. “But what jumped out at me was that the Wellington project is already $601,000 over budget. I haven’t seen a strategy about how that is going to be paid back or funded. I have questions about funding and financing plan. I am sure it is somewhere.”

It would have been a good moment for staff or the council members who sit on the board to pipe up. To illuminate a path out of the wilderness. Instead, crickets.

Instead, there were questions about an invoice from its auditor that appeared to be high. There was a presentation to consider enabling the Storehouse Foodbank to build on part of the Wellington property.

There was a report on the ‘Action Tracker’ which lists the things the board does. The board learned that the Action Tracker has been updated.

There was praise for the staff for participating in a Housing and Homeless event hosted by the Prince Edward-Lennox and Addington Social Services on October 1.

“It was incredible,” said Picton councillor Kate McNaughton. “It’s a shame we have to have these events.”

What there wasn’t, however, was much discussion about affordable housing. The meeting chair, Councillor Phil St-Jean, hinted that the board had received an expression of interest from a developer for its Disraeli Street (Picton) property. But then the board quickly slid behind closed doors.

In a statement after the meeting, Shire Hall wrote to say that “Housing staff have been working with our local CMHC rep to determine the best funding program for that initiative.”

Fair enough, but does the municipality really need to spend $522,000 this year and $571,000 next year to stickhandle this potential transaction? These projects have been on the County books for more than a decade, with little movement.

Shire Hall counters that the County Housing Department also provides front-line support to residents seeking rental housing, as well as support for the operation of the Leeward House transitional housing facility. Two staff positions are fully funded through the provincial Homelessness Prevention Fund, administered by our social services manager, Prince Edward-Lennox and Addington Social Services.”

In any event, it is time to take another look at how Shire Hall is making housing affordable.