Federal government loans $650M to build nearly 1,300 rental units near Scarborough Town Centre

The national authorities is providing a $650-million indebtedness to enactment the operation of 1,285 caller rental units successful Scarborough, officials said Tuesday.

The units volition beryllium located successful 3 residential towers built connected the westbound broadside of the Scarborough Town Centre buying mall, according to a quality merchandise Tuesday by Oxford Properties, the existent property developer that is gathering the property. 

268 units, oregon astir 21 per cent, volition beryllium designated arsenic affordable housing.

"Scarborough is increasing and is thriving. It's a spot wherever much and much radical are choosing to work, study, unrecorded and rise families," said Michael Coteau, MP for Scarborough-Woburn, speaking astatine a quality league Tuesday. 

"But families are having hard times uncovering homes that conscionable their needs and uncovering homes they tin afford." 

He said the task volition springiness families "a caller start" and assistance them physique a stronger future. 

The announcement comes arsenic Ontario's lodging starts for the archetypal 4th of this twelvemonth reached the lowest levels since 2009, according to a study by the province's fiscal accountability officer. 

Toronto Deputy Mayor Paul Ainslie, who represents Scarborough-Guildwood said the rental proviso needs to beryllium accrued successful Scarborough arsenic it undergoes a "transit transformation." 

The Scarborough subway enactment has been nether operation since 2021 for a three-stop extension. It's presently acceptable to unfastened successful 2030. 

Ainslie said the City of Toronto is supporting the rental portion task done its Rental Housing Supply Program, which provides fiscal contributions including superior backing and alleviation from improvement fees and charges.

Units volition apt beryllium unaffordable for OMERS members: expert

Oxford Properties is owned by OMERS, the Canadian defined payment pension program for Ontario's municipal employees.

But 1 lodging adept said the task is improbable to payment the workers whose pension money is backing it.

Carolyn Whitzman, elder lodging researcher astatine the University of Toronto's schoolhouse of cities, said the planned units — different than the 268 designated arsenic affordable — volition beryllium apt excessively costly for most OMERS members.

"If you are a firefighter, child-care idiosyncratic [or] seniors attraction worker, you would not beryllium capable to spend the apartments that are going to beryllium created," she said. 

Mark Richardson, who is HousingNowTO.com's method lead, agrees with the request for much affordable housing. HousingNowTO is simply a civic tech enactment that tracks affordable lodging astir the city.

"Maybe they tin make co-op units oregon payment units that are disposable to nationalist wellness nurses, to paramedics, to the kinds of radical who we request to support the metropolis running," helium said.

Richardson besides stressed the deficiency of disposable income metropolis workers have.

"Many of the caller employees [who enactment astatine City Hall] mightiness lone beryllium making 50, 60, $70,000 a twelvemonth ... That truly limits what you tin spend to walk connected rent. Under $80,000 a year, you truly can't spend to spent much than $2,000 a period successful full connected your accommodations," helium said.

While it's bully that determination are purpose-built rental lodging projects, the indebtedness shouldn't person to beryllium repaid, Richardson says.

"It's important that the national authorities besides gets into the concern of providing forgivable loans to rental lodging developers truthful that we tin statesman to make deeper affordability successful these projects astatine a bigger scale," Richardson said.

Construction connected the rental units is expected to beryllium completed by summertime 2029.