“Homelessness & Affordability Crisis”

A recently announced funding opportunity for homelessness programs from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development would reward communities that commit to public safety—including those that comply with the Sex Offender Registry and Notification Act. At first glance, this may seem like an unusual concern for homelessness policy. But it relates directly to a growing concern among policymakers about a strong link between sex offenses and homelessness—one that activists have attempted to obscure.

For years, a vocal minority of social activists have effectively dictated public policy in Canadian cities. Homeless encampments in parks and beside playgrounds have not simply been tolerated, but recharacterized as legitimate neighbourhoods to be protected. Indeed, drive around Toronto and you’ll see signs that read “I support my neighbours in tents” outside million-dollar homes, where the families who sleep inside ostensibly have private backyards to enjoy. (Lower-income families without backyards, by contrast, actually have to share public outdoor spaces with those “neighbours in tents.”)

Nothing corrodes political credibility faster than pretending a problem doesn’t exist. Especially when that problem is one that voters feel in their bones. And nothing angers voters more — or accelerates their distrust — than denying the reality that life is getting more expensive.

You can stall, spin, or distract from this fact. But eventually, the bills come due.

Last week offered two striking examples of just that.

The new federal budget makes it clear that Prime Minister Mark Carney is unprepared to tackle the national housing crisis. His proposed measures are half-hearted at best and fail to adequately address the overregulation throttling construction of new supply.

Canada has chronically built too little housing to meet burgeoning demand, which, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), has led to a national shortage of approximately 2.6 million units. This is the primary reason why the inflation-adjusted price of an average Canadian home has doubled since the early 2000s — there are simply too many people bidding on scarce inventory.

Ontario’s planned new housing legislation could open the door to ending rent control and indefinite leases across the province, advocates warn after a recent proposal by Premier Doug Ford’s government.

The Ford government introduced a new housing bill on Thursday that it says would streamline approvals and let developers build homes more quickly.

But buried in the legislation is a proposal for “alternative options to lease expiry rules that could allow landlords to control who occupies their units and for how long,” including through adjustments to rental arrangements based on “market conditions, personal needs or business strategies,” according to the province’s briefing slides Thursday.

Majority of Canadians (nearly 60 per cent) say they support communities declaring states of emergency in order to clear homeless encampments in parks and public spaces, according to a new poll.

Thirty two per cent of Canadians said they supported the tactic and 25 per cent said they somewhat supported it. “Men are more likely to support or somewhat support these initiatives than women,” according to the Nanos poll, published on Oct. 18. Three out of 10 Canadians opposed or somewhat opposed using a state of emergency to clear homeless encampments. Six per cent said they were unsure.

A downtown Oshawa property manager says she risks losing her family business, located opposite a non-profit agency that helps people who are homeless, amid ongoing issues on her property — including drug use, vandalism and public urination.

Lord Simcoe Place on Simcoe Street S. has been in Cindy Malachowski’s family for generations. But she says the building is bleeding tenants and has its highest vacancy rate in some 55 years.

“We had one paralegal service leave, saying, ‘We love the building, you’re a great landlord, but we watch people urinate outside our window and watch people shoot up,’” she said.

Mandatory treatment.

If a renter in Toronto wants to dedicate about a third of their paycheque to a one-bedroom apartment each month, they should be making roughly $44 an hour.

That’s according to Zoocasa, a real estate website, which crunched the numbers after several provinces recently raised their minimum wages to keep pace with the rising cost of living.

As of Oct. 1, Ontario raised that wage to $17.60 per hour, reflecting a $0.40 increase from the previous rate.