Although Greater Sudbury city council was unanimous in selecting a New Sudbury-area property for a transitional housing development to help people who are chronically homeless transition into permanent housing, that decision isn’t set in stone.
This is the key point Ward 5 Coun. Robert Kirwan has been making during discussions with area residents and property owners this week, following Tuesday’s decision of city council.
As it stands, the city-owned Lorraine Street property, located west of the Notre Dame Avenue and Lasalle Boulevard intersection in New Sudbury, is slated for at least 28 transitional housing units.
Kirwan estimates spending as much as three hours on the phone with people concerned about the proposal on Wednesday alone.
“Prior to the final council decision, there will be an open house,” he told Sudbury.com on Thursday, adding that area property owners and residents alike will be sent an invitation “to come out and express their concerns.”
Property owner Ron Savage has already been expressing his concerns on social media.
Savage owns a six-plex across the street from the development’s proposed location and learned about city council’s decision from a tenant, who in turn learned about it as a result of this week’s media coverage.
Although “completely in favour of the program” in general, he said his gut-reaction opposition to council’s site selection is centred on his concern the project will negatively affect his tenants and devalue area properties such as his.
He’s also not convinced it’s the right location for a facility
“All your services are downtown … and now you’re going to be hoping that they get the buses to get downtown?” he said. “There’s nothing around (Lorraine Street) unless you’re going to the taxation area or back to school.”
The city should have drafted some kind of feasibility study that highlighted potential community impacts before city council selected a location, he said, adding it’s currently unclear what’s going to happen to the property he worked his “ass off” to purchase.
Further, he said community input, if sought, might have helped inform city council’s site selection.
Kirwan said city council needed to select a property quickly in order to meet the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation application deadline, which is at the end of August.
Through its Rapid Housing Initiative, CMHC has pledged $7.4 million toward the project, which will see a minimum of 28 transitional housing units constructed.
City staff worked “incredibly hard at coming up with a site that is going to meet all the conditions,” Kirwan said, adding it was always their intention to seek the feedback of area property owners and residents prior to final approval.
“It seems like it’s a good site, but at the end of the day, if there’s a lot of opposition or concerns that can’t be satisfied at the public meeting it’s my job as councillor for Ward 5 to speak for those people,” he said.
“I won’t know until after the public meeting what my position will be moving forward.”
The public meeting will be announced as soon as the city hears back from CMHC on their application, which Kirwan said isn’t expected until after the Sept. 20 federal election.
In the event city council settles on a location other than the Lorraine Street address they cite in their application, Kirwan said he doubts CMHC would retract their funding offer.
“They’re not going to take money back,” he said. “Transitional housing is really urgently needed.”
A CMHC spokesperson declined comment due to restrictions related to the federal election.
An inquiry submitted to City of Greater Sudbury communications staff regarding potential impacts to area properties was not returned by the end of day Thursday.
