United Way Announces United Housing Initiative to Address Lack of Housing Across Perth-Huron

by Bob Montgomery

United Way Perth-Huron Executive Director Ryan Erb says the United Way's mandate is to identify social issues in the community and find solutions for them.

Erb says they're marking National Housing Day, November 22nd, with the announcement of their new United Housing Initiative. Erb says the creation of the United Housing Initiative was the result of looking at data, looking at the conditions in their community, talking with their partners and recognizing there was a gap in service. He says the goal is to have the new United Housing Initiative involved, building and sustaining affordable housing for their community for some time to come.

Erb says United Housing is really focused on a mixed model of housing. They want to make sure that their communities include people from different levels of life, so people with different income levels and different backgrounds. They want all of them to be part of the community because they believe communities are stronger when they're not segregated. Erb says there are people experiencing homelessness, people escaping violent home situations who can’t afford an apartment, personal support workers who can’t live and work in the same community and seniors having to leave their homes who don’t have enough to afford anything in the rental market. He says with United Housing, they're hoping to help ease a housing crisis that we all either see or are experiencing firsthand. 

Erb says they know that every community needs housing for different levels of income and different levels of support. He points out an integrated community is also a better business model because they can have affordable housing or work force housing and market housing all in the same development, so that different levels of income and ability can have the housing that's adequate for their success in life. He suggests housing shouldn't be thought of as a commodity, it should be thought of as infrastructure that is the backbone of the community and its economy.

Erb says United Housing’s focus is as a non-profit developer and operator of affordable rental supply. United Housing also aims to take a lead role in helping current landlords by fundraising, renovating and operating units so buildings don’t sit unused, partner with developers to help meet government requirements around affordable housing units and create workforce housing so people can afford to live and work in the same community. For the purposes of United Housing, affordable housing is defined as taking up no more than 30 percent of an individual or family’s income every month.

Mitchell Rhodes is the Director of United Housing. More information about United Housing can be found at perthhuron.unitedway.ca

Photo courtesy of United Way Perth-Huron
Left to right: Mitchell Rhodes and Ryan Erb