HOUSING AGAIN • BulletinNumber 89 March 1, 2006 The Housing Again
Bulletin, sponsored by Raising the Roof A monthly electronic
bulletin highlighting what people are doing to Our web sites are: Shared Learnings on
Homelessness Raising the Roof If you have any tips for the Bulletin please e-mail: ---------------------------------------------------
Feature: The Housing
Agenda—Post Election
Community Profile: Celebrating Outstanding Work with Homeless
Youth
News Briefs: Newsletter Profiles
Innovative Work with Homeless Youth, Strengthening Cross Canada Linkages,
Affordable Housing
Advocates Critical of BC Budget, and World Urban Forum III
----------------------------------------------- The Housing Agenda—Post
Election Former Federal Housing Minister Joe Fontana was two days away from tabling a much awaited 10-year national housing framework with Cabinet when the government fell last December triggering an early election call. Instead, Fontana extended the housing initiatives along with funding for a one-year period, securing programs until the end of 2006. The Liberals, however, failed to win the election and now it is up to the Conservatives to follow through, or not, on the housing agenda. Soon after the election, Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed
Haldimand-Norfolk MP Diane Finley as
the minister responsible for the newly re-organized Department of Human Resources and Social
Development, which includes responsibility for CMHC. As Housing Minister, Finley has
not made any public statements about her plans for a national housing framework.
Raising the Roof Board President Sean Goetz-Gadon sat down with Housing Again to discuss the impact of the election results on the housing agenda. “In the short-term, the housing programs will continue and there should be no immediate impact as a result of the election,” he said. “In the long-term, we really aren’t clear, but there appears to be support for the existing initiatives and willingness to build on those initiatives.”
“All four major parties elected to the House of Commons have solid housing platforms,” said Goetz-Gadon, “so there would appear to be the political will for an ongoing federal presence in affordable housing. This presence is essential as it will help lever affordable housing support from the provinces and territories.” In the U.S. after the Bush Administration was elected, American housing advocates were concerned that interest in the housing agenda would wane. That hasn’t happened, Goetz-Gadon said. The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness now administrates a 10 year plan to end chronic homelessness with an annual budget of $4 billion. “There is increasing confidence within the community that we can find solutions to homelessness. There is an increasing willingness from the private sector to get involved. Making the case for investments in new affordable housing to the new Conservative government isn’t about charity—it’s about the role affordable housing plays in contributing to the economic wellbeing of the country,” Goetz-Gadon said. During the election campaign, Harper
released a plan to encourage the construction of new affordable housing saying
the Conservative government would “work with the provinces and municipalities to
develop tax incentives for private-sector builders so that low-income city
dwellers will have improved access to affordable
housing.” Beginning in 2007-08, Harper said the
government would set aside, on an “experimental” basis, $200-million annually in
the form of federal tax credits, administered by CMHC, to encourage developers
to build or refurbish affordable rental units. Harper defines affordable units
as those in which at least 40 per cent of the occupants earn less than 60 per
cent of the local median income. A short backgrounder on the issue said the
funding would “supplement existing programs.”
“These are all good things provided these
initiatives help those Canadians most in need and do not replace the existing
housing and homeless programs that are still rolling out across the country,”
said Goetz-Gadon. “In the weeks and months ahead it is
essential that housing groups from across the country make known the importance
of the federal government remaining actively involved in affordable housing and
homeless programs”, said Goetz-Gadon.
He concluded by noting “a national
affordable housing strategy is essential to addressing the needs of the 1.7
million Canadian families who cannot afford their housing costs or live in
inadequate housing conditions.” ------------------------------------------------- Community
Spotlight:
Celebrating Outstanding Work with
Homeless Youth
NEWS
BRIEFS:
Newsletter Profiles Innovative Work
with Homeless Youth In January, Raising the Roof launched a $1.2 million, three-year project, called Youthworks, aimed at supporting, and promoting programs and approaches that best serve homeless youth and youth at risk across Canada. In the first phase of this project, Youthworks will provide funding to three agencies doing innovative work in this sector. These agencies are the Back Door in Calgary, Choices for Youth in St. John’s and Eva’s Phoenix in Toronto. The goal of the project is to track the experiences of the approximately 500 young people in these programs to determine what is working and what more can be done to help them succeed. In learning from their experiences and sharing this knowledge with a wider audience Youthworks hopes to positively influence public attitudes and public policy in a way that will result in more effective programs for homeless youth all across Canada. Over the next three years, the Youthworks project will share the experiences of these young people and other youth at risk, in these pages, in a new newsletter set to launch in July, on Raising the Roof’s Shared Learnings Web site and at special events and regional conferences sponsored by Raising the Roof. In addition, in partnership with Raising the Roof, Housing Again will profile other agencies across Canada doing important and innovative work to help homeless youth succeed. Strengthening Cross Canada
Linkages On March 31, Campaign 2000’s project, “Strengthening Cross Canada Linkages on Social Inclusion: Focus on Child and Family Poverty 2004-2006,” comes to an end. During March, regional partners will be holding their second, and final, regional forums in Vancouver, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Toronto and Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador. The forums will focus on a review of strategies to address the complex issues of child and family poverty in the current context, strengthening networks of coalition partners regionally and across Canada and determining what is needed to sustain these networks. If interested in attending, contact Elizabeth Ablett, at elizabethab@fsatoronto.com. Affordable Housing Advocates Critical
of BC Budget BC Non-Profit Housing Association Executive Director Alice Sundberg said the recent budget by the provincial government provided “no new hope for balanced funding for a full range of housing options.” While Finance Minister Carole Taylor dubbed this a “children's budget” it did not include any dollars for affordable family rental housing, a key element in a stable and healthy childhood, Sundberg said. http://www.bcnpha.bc.ca/pages/BudgetFeb06.htm World Urban Forum III
Registration is now open
for the third session of the World Urban Forum (WUFIII) in Vancouver from 19–23 June 2006. The
main theme of this session is “Our
Future: Sustainable Cities – Turning Ideas into
Action” with the
following sub-themes: urban growth and the environment; partnership and finance;
and social inclusion and cohesion including affordable housing. The World Urban Forum is a biennial
gathering that is attended by a wide range of partners, from non-governmental
and community-based organizations, urban professionals, academics, to
governments, local authorities and national and international associations of
local governments. In 2004, more than 4,400 people attended the WUFII in Barcelona and 6,000 are expected to arrive in Vancouver. There is no cost to register; however, those hoping to participate must register ahead of time. The World Youth Forum will also be
held the week before, 16-18 June 2006. It will bring together about 300 youth
leaders from around the world and give young people a platform to air their
views, concerns and ideas for the future, and will showcase youth-led projects
and best practices. To register: http://hq.unhabitat.org/wuf/2006/registration.asp
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