More municipal and federal cash flow needed to tackle homelessness: Ottawa Mission

The Ottawa Mission wants to see more funding at both the municipal and federal level to tackle homelessness in Ottawa.

The issues surrounding homelessness are complex, but one simple fact is that more money is needed for affordable housing and social services. 

While the recently passed 2023 Ottawa budget includes $16-million for affordable housing, compared to the $15-million figure in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022, Peter Tilley at the Ottawa Mission suggests a figure closer to $20-million is needed.

Tilley adds $16-million only goes so far, especially as the value of those dollars is down due to inflation and the increasing numbers of people needing services in the first place.

Tilley also acknowledges the fact that municipal funding won't cut it. 

“We do need the federal government to continue on with the national housing strategy,” Tilley told the Sam Laprade Show. “When you're talking the big builds, some of these cities — like the size of Ottawa — we need at least 1,000 units to be built and soon. That is where the federal government is going to have to come forward.”  

In a tweet on Thursday, March 2, federal Housing and Diversity Minister Ahmed Hussen said had spoken with Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe about “their shared priority of getting more affordable housing built in Ottawa.” 

He added, “We must work closely together and have all levels of government doing their part.”

For his part, Sutcliffe said the city is always working with all levels of government to address homelessness.

“The reality is that the city's investment in affordable housing is always going to be about leveraging the investments of other levels of government,” said Sutcliffe. “We're having regular conversations with other levels of government about new programs that are coming into place that the City of Ottawa is going to access to build more affordable housing.”

Sutcliffe adds while the majority of funding for affordable housing will come from other levels of government, the city is looking at creative ways to bridge the gaps. 

“Like using city land to build affordable housing — that doesn't require a cash investment, but we can take land that's owned by the city of Ottawa and we can put that towards affordable housing using community partners like Ottawa Community Housing, or other community housing organizations — or we can collaborate with the private sector by partnering and assuring there's a high threshold of affordable housing on a development that's being built on city-owned land.”

There are currently 12,000 people on the waiting list for Ottawa Community Housing's supportive housing, thousands live in shelters and the city estimates that more than 200 people sleep outside.

Listen to the full interview with Peter Tilley below: