By Brent Bosker

City report highlights affordable housing shortage

Dec 17, 2010 | 5:13 AM

Affordable housing in Prince Albert is at a critical point, according to Councilor Ted Zurakowski who is responding to a social development report by the city.

“Action needs to be taken. We need to do something (because) it’s out of control,” said Zurakowski, who also chairs the city’s housing committee.

The figures in the report were based on information gathered from five community-based organizations that provide attainable housing in the city. The survey looked at things like average rent and vacancy rates, and compared those numbers with the October private market survey from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

The report’s main finding was that there is virtually zero stock of affordable housing units in the city and that there are long wait lists for those trying to get into one of the 1514 units.

CMHC pegged vacancy in the private sector at 3.8 per cent. The city says the not-for-profit market was much less, at .53 per cent vacancy.

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Linda Boyer with the Prince Albert Community Housing Society said for them, it’s at zero.

“The only reason one of our units would be vacant is for maintenance. There’s quite a demand for both, families, seniors and individuals. There needs to be something done to increase … affordable housing.”

Zurakowski said demand is out stripping supply because more families and individuals are facing increasing rents.

“As a city councilor it’s frustrating because housing, like education and like health has traditionally been a provincial responsibility, and yet this is occurring on our front door step, so how do we ignore it.”

Zurakowski said the city has taken action, pointing to a fund that collects a portion of taxes from current affordable housing units in the city and puts the money aside for future initiatives.

Zurakowski said they’re also entertaining initiatives that other municipalities have deployed, such as pocket homes in Winnipeg. Architect Stephen Cohlmeyer talked about the housing concept during a recent speech in Prince Albert.

Solving the problem comes down to money and creating partnerships said Zurakowski.

“I think part of the answer is we have to bring people involved in housing to the table. We have to bring government, private developers, social developers and the banks to the table and say we have this problem how do we get it fixed.”

bbosker@panow.com