Mayfair Village Affordable Housing $40 Million Savings
April 01, 2011
A truly groundbreaking partnership of the three levels of government with the private sector to provide quality affordable rental housing development is underway, saving taxpayers $40 million!Mayfair Village is downtown at Jasper Avenue and 109th Street. When completed the 237 units (of 700) will rent for 10% less than market average rent - making them affordable for lower income people, minimum wage earners or pensioners who have been unable to find good quality affordable independent living housing.
I have been supporting developer ProCura on this project since it was first brought to my attention two years ago when federal and provincial funding applications were stalled. This project confirms there is an alternative to what has become the usual method of funding affordable housing: government grants mostly to social non-profit organizations, at greatly increased taxpayer costs as they expand into becoming rental housing providers. Recent grants from the provincial and federal governments to social non-profit groups have been two to even seven times the amount needed by the private sector to provide the identical housing product.
The emphasis should be on helping those who neither need nor want elaborate non-profit social services’ hand holding, just the dignity of their own affordable independent living rental accommodations, currently unobtainable on their minimum or near-minimum wage entry-level jobs.
We need both the private sector and the non-profit sector, working with the municipalities to effect real positive change on a broad range of collective, social and economic needs.
Mayfair Village shows that it is possible for the private sector, in partnership with the three levels of government, to be involved in affordable rental housing at great taxpayer savings - $40 million less than a similar project by the social non-profit sector. It is, I hope, the first of many such projects.
What do you think?