-By Madeline Matcheski and Anne Finlay-Stewart
On Thursday, May 12, The Community Foundations Grey Bruce (CFGB) launched their Vital Focus on Housing report with a discussion of plans to reduce the homeless population in Grey and Bruce County, and hopefully lower the cost of living overall.
Recognizing that this is a double election year, Stuard Reid, Executive Director of the Foundation encouraged community involvement - start a conversation, pass it on, find out more by contacting the foundation and share your time and resources. Take action.
Reid says they hope our communities in Grey Bruce can meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the UN by 2030, so we can “Link what we do locally to the global goals for a sustainable environment.”
In Grey and Bruce County, we have a large rural population and some of the fastest-growing urban centers and costs are growing too. Because of the influx of new people, it is common knowledge that the cost of living has skyrocketed! From 2020 to 2021 there was a 35% increase in the cost of housing to an average single-family house price of $650,944. In Owen Sound, about 40% of housing units are rentals - double that of Grey County as a whole - and half of the renters spend over 30% of their income on housing.
While these statistics harm everyone, younger women are the most affected by the cost of housing, especially those who are single with children or those with disabilities. In addition, lack of public transport makes some affordable housing outside of urban centres out of reach for those without vehicles.
Participants of the launch shared a variety of ideas and support systems in place to help those currently struggling with housing and to make systems for long-term housing.
The Meeting Place which runs out of Tobermory has a mission to work directly with people in the area to convince them to rent long-term rather than targeting short-term tourists. Home and Community Support Services are looking for volunteers that can assist older residents in their homes. They are hoping to bridge the gap between social and healthcare by creating community-oriented spaces so our elderly don’t have to leave their homes.
Glassworks Cooperative shared its plans for an “Attainable sustainable community,” of shared and more affordable housing. They have purchased 46 acres of land on Owen Sound’s East hill, to build 350 units and host a variety of buildings like art facilities, micro-retail with greenspace, regenerative agriculture and employment opportunities. They say their plan is to connect “home to the land, work, play and community.”
M’Wikwedong Indigenous Friendship Centre and Habitat for Humanity focussed their efforts specifically on First Nations’ communities. The Giiwe Project works to provide Indigenous communities with emergency housing and case management. Habitat for Humanity has built 21 houses on First Nations thus far and has plans to build 7 more on land within the next year.
Other tables like the Grey Bruce Poverty Task Force put emphasis on education on this subject and help to organize and support movements like these. YMCA Community Initiatives announced their housing rose from 225 nights of shelter per month in 2019 to 975 per month in 2022.
While it was enlightening to see these organizations trying their best to fix this crisis, it is up to our elected representatives to truly make an effort to change this.
Statistics Source: Community Foundation Grey-Bruce
