Feds help fund 155 affordable housing unit renovations in Nipissing District

Feds fund North Bay affordable housing repairs Work is being done to add steel roofing to affordable housing complexes on McNamara Street in the northwest end of North Bay.

Work is being done to add steel roofing to affordable housing complexes on McNamara Street in the northwest end of North Bay.

It's work that's part of the Liberal government’s plan to retrofit urgently needed affordable housing renovations.

“We have existing housing and if we don’t take care of it, it disappears and then we have less,” Nipissing-Timiskaming MP Anthony Rota said Thursday.

In February, the government announced more than $1.5 million for the Nipissing District Housing Corp. to convert homes relying on fuel heating to electric, upgrade attic insulation and improve accessibility issues for those with limited hearing and vision.

The total cost of the project is close to $5.2 million.

“There’s plenty of interest locally about housing and we have to look at satisfying as much as we can,” Rota said.

“There’s a limited amount of funding and we need to make sure the funding is received.”

In total, 155 units need improvements. The work is expected to extend the life expectancy of the units, which were built between mid-1960s and the early 1990s.

The District of Nipissing Social Services Administration Board welcomes the touch-up funds, but continues to stress the need for more affordable housing to combat homelessness and economic challenges.

“Municipalities have said, 'Enough is enough,'" said board chair Mark King.

"We need the upper levels of government to step in and help us figure out this problem."

The board estimates the Nipissing District is short anywhere from 200-300 affordable housing units.

While there are no housing applications at this time, the board said it requires the private sector’s help to address the situation.

“The Northern Ontario (Service Deliverers) Association basically talked about a thousand units across northern Ontario,” King said.

While at the recent AMO conference in Ottawa, King brought up the concern that people who need Ontario Works assistance struggle to get by, which adds to the ongoing homeless crisis.

“A single individual at $733 a month cannot afford housing, so there lies the problem,” King said.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation will provide $10,000 per unit, with the NDHC balancing the cost.