Status quo recommended for grants toward affordable and social housing
By Al Beeber - Lethbridge Herald on October 20, 2022.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDabeeber@lethbridgeherald.com
Lethbridge city council in its role as the Economic Standing Policy Committee went with the status quo on a matter involving grants to affordable and social housing providers.
The committee on Wednesday morning voted 7-2 in favour of recommending to the City that it only consider offering capital grants to such providers.
Councillors John Middleton-Hope and Belinda Crowson voted against the motion.
Councillor Jeff Carlson, who spoke on the motion that had a friendly amendment from Councillor Rajko Dodic, said the City would be taking a risky path by offering operating grants which would have it getting involved in a matter that is a provincial jurisdiction, a point which was contained in a report to the SPC by Community Social Development.
That report said other communities have cautioned against entering into the housing jurisdiction and that it feels the City should only continue offering capital grants.
“Council needs to stay in our lane,” said Carlson, adding that providing ongoing operating funding would be detrimental for Lethbridge taxpayers.
Crowson disagreed, saying the city needs to “take some action” on the issue for the community.
By maintaining the status quo, the city administration would continue working with housing providers through the Affordable and Social Housing Capital Grant, said the report, which adds that administration is bringing changes to ASCHCG policy later this year.
Among those changes is a redefinition of eligibility criteria, funding and assigned responsibilities in the current policy.
The report adds that affordable and social housing is the jurisdiction of the province, not municipalities.
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13-12
I rarely agree with Councilor Carlson, but in this case I do. Housing is the provincial government’s responsibility and once we open that door we will be expected to take more control of supportive housing in our community and that means it will be our responsibitily to fund those projects.
The 3 C’s should have lost the last election and hopefully there will be gone in the next election so we can take our city back.
Stay in your lane and stop blowing the taxpayer’s dollars!