A group of local students is asking the Amherstburg council to change its bylaw surrounding tiny homes in an effort to help fill the need for affordable and ecologically responsible homes in the community.
The Raybots, a FIRST Lego League Robotics team from Stella Marais Catholic School, first started investigating the issue as part of a team project. The aim of the project was to identify a problem with a building or city space in the community and solve it.
"The children wanted to address the housing issue in our local community and they thought that a good solution would be to allow tiny houses," said Christine Parks, a teacher at Stella Marais.
Currently, by-laws in Amherstburg do not allow the construction of tiny homes.
"They think [tiny homes] may be a good fit for our town because they solve a number of issues. One they are affordable for young people starting out, they can be made accessible for people with disabilities, they are easy to maintain for seniors, there's lower expenses, low energy use," said Parks. "They thought tiny houses could fit all those needs and be a solution we just have to adjust the bylaws to allow that to happen."
The Raybots will make a presentation to council Monday night in hopes of changing the rules.