Today, Council's Executive Committee approved a Housing and Affordability Task Force Notice of Motion, co-sponsored by myself and Councillors Carra and Penner. Council will consider this Notice of Motion on June 7th.
This is about more than just Affordable Housing. The City as an org needs to understand what role it can play in safeguarding housing affordability across the housing continuum.
Calgary has been able to avoid the massive housing price increases seen in cities like Vancouver and Toronto. I want Calgary to maintain this advantage. Our success relies on being an affordable place to live and work. Despite our comparatively affordable housing situation, still too many Calgarians are struggling to find adequate housing that is appropriate, affordable and sustainable. We can’t wait for things to get worse before taking action.
My colleagues Councillor Carra and Councillor Penner are co-sponsors of this Notice of Motion. If you care about housing and housing affordability in Calgary, please contact your representative on Council and ask them to support housing affordability in Calgary.
You can read the full Notice of Motion here. One important distinction (that the teacher in me must point out) is the difference between Affordable Housing (Capital A and H) and housing affordability: two different things.
Some on Council might object on jurisdictional grounds—but municipalities DO play an important role in housing. Federal funding streams like the Rapid Housing Initiative support municipalities and nonprofits in building deeply affordable housing.
As demand grows, mortgage rates rise, and Calgary faces low residential rental vacancy rates, the issue of housing affordability is very real.
Note: On June 7, 2022, Council approved the Housing and Affordability Task Force. The Engagement page for the Task Force was launched in August 2022, and feedback regarding the Task Force can be directed to [email protected].
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