Fund to spur changing underused properties into housing 1 of 3 recommendations of city task force

A city task force has three recommendations to increase affordable housing in Edmonton. CTV News Edmonton's Nav Sangha has the details.

The establishment of a community fund to help turn underused properties into housing is one of three recommendations an Edmonton taskforce is giving to city council following last year’s declaration of a homelessness and housing emergency.

The $1.5-million fund would “effectively incent” owners of underutilized property to consider new ways to transform them into housing, said Nick Lilley, co-chair of the city’s Community Revitalization Taskforce.

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“This is not the funding that’s going to make all of that happen in one shot,” Lilley told media on Monday at city hall.

“Really, the idea is to incent that initial consideration, the feasibility study, the pre-development consideration that goes to evaluating whether there is a possibility that this could be sustainable, long-serving housing.”

The other two recommendations city council will consider when it meets next week are approving $1 million toward a bridge between housing platforms – a shared digital space that would connect housing providers with social service agencies – and another $1 million to establish a peer support service for vulnerable tenants.

Lilley said the task force looked at what other cities do to better coordinate housing platforms when deciding to suggest city council consider funding the bridge.

“This did feel like a gap, less so in terms of how we are coordinating our response for those who are currently unhoused, more so the response to those who are vulnerably housed as it stands to date, maybe the at-risk-of-becoming unhoused, and some of the supports and coordination that is ongoing but seemingly could be improved upon with a platform such as this,” he said.

Coun. Erin Rutherford – also a member of the 17-person group made up of members from housing service agencies, academia and business – said if city council OKs the recommendations, they’re meant to “be actionable” but didn’t give a firm timeline, only that they would like them to be “out in the community sooner rather than later.”

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Nav Sangha