Oxford County council endorses affordable micro-housing plan

Woodstock to build micro-homes for homeless From CTV London's Bryan Bicknell – Oxford County council has endorsed a new affordable housing project involving micro units.

London, Ont. — A new affordable housing project in Woodstock, Ont. has been given the green light by Oxford County council.

On Wednesday, council voted unanimously in favour of a proposal to build eight micro housing units on a parcel of county-owned land at 738 Parkinson Road in Woodstock, at a cost of $1.12 million.

Councillor Stephen Molnar, the mayor of Tillsonburg, spoke in support of the plan saying, “Eight units is eight more than we would have had yesterday prior to the resolution.”

The money will come from the county’s Social Service Relief Fund, a provincial funding initiative designed to support those most vulnerable to the social effects of COVID-19.

Part of the impetus to move the project along quickly is the impending provincial deadline, according to Human Services Director Paul Beaton.

“We own the land, and so, it’s one of the few projects we could come up with on county owned land that we could do to meet the deadline of having it started and constructed, and occupied by the end of the year.”

The project will consist of eight modular micro units, each estimated to cost in excess of $200,000, including site work and various approvals. The units will be between 320 and 400 square feet in size, depending on the design.

Molnar added, “We need to continue to work right across the county of Oxford to ensure that there’s equitable opportunity for people in all the communities across Oxford, working with the private sector.”