Committee receives Indigenous-specific housing strategy

The Planning and Housing Committee received a presentation today on the Indigenous-specific housing strategy developed by the Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition. The Planning and Housing Committee received a presentation today on the Indigenous-specific housing strategy developed by the Ottawa Aboriginal Coalition (OAC). As part of a commitment made through Ottawa’s 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan, the City has provided staff support to accompany the OAC as they develop and implement the strategy. In developing the strategy, the OAC has identified key projects that would benefit Indigenous community members experiencing homelessness in Ottawa. The projects include transitional housing for Inuit women and their children, a family healing centre, an aging-out initiative to support youth aging out of Children’s Aid Society care, and an Indigenous hub. Access to City-owned lands will be key to the success of both the strategy and these key projects. In May, Council approved the transfer of City-owned lands at 250 Forestglade Crescent to the OAC, to move forward with efforts to build transitional housing for Inuit women and their children. The project, which will be funded by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and Indigenous Services Canada, would make Ottawa the first city south of Inuit Nunangat to offer transitional housing for Inuit women. As the OAC continues to advance its strategy, the City will seek to identify more municipally owned lands that might be made available for projects. The Committee approved an application to rezone a federally owned property at Heron Road and Baycrest Drive. The site was formerly known as the Campanile Campus – a religious and educational institution built in the 1960s. The Canada Lands Company owns the property currently and aims to sell it for future redevelopment, with the intention that 20 per cent of residential units would be delivered as affordable. A concept plan shows the site could accommodate about 1,100 dwellings and 7,600 square metres of non-residential space in low-rise and mid-rise buildings. The concept plan also indicates that nine of the 12 existing buildings could be retained and repurposed as part of redevelopment. The Committee approved the 2024 Development Charge Background Study Amendment Report and By-laws. In May, Council approved a new schedule of development charges and a new development charges by-law, allowing for the continued collection of fees and ensuring essential infrastructure and services keep pace with growth in Ottawa. Council has since adopted the 2024 Infrastructure Master Plan (IMP), bringing the development forecast for water and wastewater services in line with Official Plan population and employment targets to the year 2046. The amendment study approved today captures all updated IMP projects and costs, and would adjust the development charge rate to ensure the City can deliver the water and wastewater infrastructure needed to support anticipated growth. To help address the housing crisis, Council committed to providing home builders enough opportunities to build 151,000 quality market homes by 2031 – or 15,100 per year. If Council approves, the land-use permissions that the Committee recommended today will help put applicants in a position to build 1,130 new dwellings in Ottawa. Visit ottawa.ca/residentialdwellings for a graphic showing quarterly progress towards Ottawa’s housing pledge targets.  Recommendations from today’s meeting will rise to Council on Wednesday, October 30.