St. Marys is attempting to address a shortage of affordable housing in the town.
CAO, Brent Kittmer, says council started with passing things like zoning by-law changes or official plan amendments allowing for more density as an initial attempt to tackle the problem. But the Opening Doors Plan has been years in the making, and Kittmer says it ramps up what they want to do and the direct investments they're going to make, including setting municipal land aside for developments.
"We're also just reframing our approach. We're gonna be a bit more aggressive in our conversations with developers when they bring new applications forward for new residential units. We're gonna use that as our opportunity to have a conversation with them about whether they're including affordable and attainable housing in their development, and if they're not, why not? Also, what else can we do to help them make that decision," Kittmer explained.
The Opening Doors Plan includes adding 200 new rental units to the town’s housing stock by 2027, with 30 of these falling into the affordable/attainable housing category.
"The primary strategy in the plan is to encourage the private market to fill that gap of 200. Again, what this plan does is give us the ability to pass new policy. For example, pass a new procurement by-law that would then let us seek out a not-for-profit housing corporation or even a private developer, who's prepared to develop affordable units. Then, if they are, and we can come to an agreement on it, we can then incentivize them by providing the land," said Kittmer.
Kittmer says this plan will not involve the town spending any actual funds to get the units built, it centres around incentivizing the developers to make the builds happen with any assistance the town can provide.
"So most of the investment will be with either the not-for-profit or the private sector, with the town sitting on the side providing as much assistance as we can through land, through incentives, through staff time and other in-kind supports that would see these units created in our community," added Kittmer.
In terms of land to incentivize developers with, Kittmer says council has already discussed different possibilities of municipally owned parcels.
"So things like old road allowances that might be sitting vacant, surplus green space on existing municipal buildings that has development potential or isn't being used by us, or even under-utilized parks. We know that may be a contentious thing, but we are very serious about this now and we believe that we have to look at our land as a utility and maximize its use," Kittmer stated.
There have, as Kittmer says, already been very preliminary talks with a potential developer.
"So we have identified two or three parcels that are of high potential and of high interest to council. So in the new year, we'll have council select one or two of them and we'll start seeking out a partner. We've already had initial discussions with Habitat for Humanity, looking at a small parcel where they'd develop six to eight units," Kittmer shared.
The plan identifies four areas that the Town should focus on to achieve its housing goals: policies, programs and incentives, land, and implementation team.
A copy of the Opening Doors plan is available on the Town website at www.townofstmarys.com/housing. Residents can read the plan and view a summarized list of the four focus areas, their associated initiatives and progress to date.
Questions about the plan can be directed to Grant Brouwer, Director of Building and Development at 519-284-2340, ext. 215 or gbrouwer@town.stmarys.on.ca.
