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WATEittddaMmilN-"sdrfiilii‘mflflo’rl-S C I TY N E t N S 6 Breaking even ' O O I I C 1118']! costs, low return makes afiordable housmga gamble for builders m Waterloo Regron Bria-mum as; ingwaitinglistlastyesrthereuaetiBâ€"a OrwnicleSmfl ‘1'” 36peroentinaeaseâ€"andaeniunmwwait two years or more for an aflordable unit to rumor. three-WW become available Mutants-Wilhelmina] é Fariierthisymrtheregirnmmmdit "W homingfiwmin , intends to build 350 new affordable rental ““ Who “but. and homeownership units by 2019, and to " s , preserve and retain 350 ensung' ‘ affordable Merriam just how many seniors in homes through renovations and repairs. ‘Wer'loowonarelookingforafi'ord- Noneofthemwillbespea'flonlfyaimedat able or low-income housing. look no fig seniors mm. sounding to Deb Sdtliclrter. further than My Owen Place in the City of . Waterloo Region’sdirectorofhotflrg. Waterloo f ‘ ‘5, Court Sean Stridland, (bmnnmity Servv The lit-storey. 49-unit low-income senâ€" , ~_~ ices chair. said the report is workirg to build iors apartment has never had a vacancy in xi/ “ ~ on the number of afl'ordabb housing units, " threeyearssinceitfirstopenedat364ErbSt. v .li»? butaddeddiemlfltargetisn'tsumt‘xnt W., next door to Supportive Housing of . “I don't think it's quite ambitious enougm Waterloo. it is one of the few low-income W ‘ id love to be able to do some me.‘ he said. buildin§ in theregion exclusivdyforseniors N m but the will to do more requires stronger Not only has every unit been occupied ‘ / ' . leadership from the federal and provincial sinoeitfirstopenedinFebruaryZOlLthe ‘ - 3" govemmentsâ€"partiuiariyinthekxmofa waitinglistoontinues togrowand someone ‘ nationallwusingstmtegyandmefimding newknodrsonthedooralmosteverydayto -‘ - “rereg‘mnhaaboreoendyputtheonm fill out an applirmion form. -\ , of more,afiordable housing along the light left mfbugrsdwdopénmtdheaom “UM" ’9" 9““ '9“ "“5 °" ‘3"? “WWW-“n“ ‘" M W t“ W °""‘. W "‘ :1“ W W «flym operations for NW0 "om Ltd He built Waterloo. it is one of the few low-Income buildings in the region excluswely for-03g“ ingotothaineartives. MyOwenPlaceafierrealin'rgjusthowdire lftbemmplesetbyMyOr-enPlaoeis the Rial-m housing supply is for seniors Unlike most condo or apartment develop- in related developmt charges ' any indication, the push to create more in Waterloo » merits in the region. My Owen Place operates A condition of the funding requires the aflordable homing will be «sin said than “We've git a waiting list a couple hundred on a break-even business model. which is building to remain low»income spamnents done Owen said it took a year and W (people) deep," added Terry Litt, building one of the bigest barriers to building more for 20 years. and without the financial new visits to numerous banks to even get the superintendent. “They give up because we lowâ€"income housing units in the regions tanoe from the various levels of Wt financing needed to begin construction just don’t have the tumover.” With the availability of new land shrinking to get started Owen said he would need to become the ruum on 'mvemnent m lower MyOwenPlaoefollowsthemodelofinde- trytheweekand the valueofthat land con- diargeaboutSl,2m month to breakevenâ€" thanatyfitiamdoorapcnmart pendent assisted living It has 44 oneibed- tinuing to climb, why would developers put morethan double what he chmnow. Delpfle Woven every math Owen room units (five are barrier-free) and five themselves on the line to build affordable 'We have people living here who make said he would 'love to build another one." s - two-bedroom unitsThebuilding is near sev- units when they can preâ€"sell condos for lessthanSl.000per month.” he addedUnits mmmnwommio eral major bus routes and has laundry servic» $200,000 or more per unit before a shovel is range from $458.64 per month to $570.66. the Wind. lid Owen and [in live es and elevator access on every floors even in the ground? including water and heat. Average market barbecues and irrviae burnt w Gratin real It is restricted to adults over 60 years of "Developers would rather do condos and rent. for a one-bedroom apartment in Water- dentssevenl timesperyelr. age whose taxable income for the previous make their money and go on to the next proj- loo Region in 20l3 was sew. That jumps to The building has developed into a witty year is less than $37,104 to qualify for a one- act." Owen said ”This is a longterm plan for $953 foratwtrbedroom apartment. knit community that watches over one bedroom unit and less than $43,584 for a us.” “The reason there's not more ofthese is in another. Littsaid two-bedroom unit. Philanthropy aside, it never would have order to make this affordable you have to get Mirth the regon's senior W set to Even though demand is high. developers happened if not for financial help from the your land at a reasonable cost. and every- double by 2031 to needy IM My are simply aren't building these low-Income region. the province and the federal govern» thing has gone up and it makes it unafford- wondering Hother builders are wilfing step apartmentsairned at seniors.0wensaid. merit. abletohaverentsetatm.'said0wen. up torepeatwhatOwenlnsbne. (liry or regional staflcan request develop The $7 million project was made possible All of these factors are adding up to an “That's where the scare is going to be.’ ers set aside a handful of units in new build- by $5.8 million in federal and provincial insufficient supply of afiordable housing for said CityolWaterloo Mayor [bends ”dorm. ings for Iow~income individuals or families. assistance through the (Ianadallntarin seniors living in the region. When My Owen before posing the million~dollar question: but those efforts are akin to "using a pebble Affordable Housing Program Agreement. Place opened in 20“, there were fewer than “Will we have enough affordable housing for into a river in hopes of slowing the How “we region also agreed to waive 8245.000 400 seniors on the region's low-income hous- m1“ ] YOUR TOP AWARD WINNING SPA f“ (25% l . ’ ‘ ‘ My ‘ ' J G r N A s l . 511.06.2090 I maniacal-I I ' O “Wu-tr m I“. Km” '0' m J , w ,.