Local advocacy groups rally against Bill 23

Local housing advocacy group members raise signs. Tue. Nov.22, 2022 (CTV News/Alessandra Carneiro)

Tuesday marked National Housing Day, with local housing advocacy group members raising their signs and voices about the housing crisis.

In downtown Barrie, demonstrators shared their own stories of housing struggles.

"Secure housing..well, people can't afford that," said Barrie resident Catherine Manson.

Manson, a mother and wife, said her family decided to sell their home to support her older children struggling to afford housing in Barrie.

"We are close to retirement, and we felt it was important that we all have safe housing and affordable housing. So we sold our house and put the money together so we could all live in one house," she said.

It's a similar conversation across town where a local coalition of advocates condemned the Ford government's proposed Bill 23, also known as the more homes built faster act, with a goal to create 1.5 million new homes in the coming decade.

"It is not going to create more affordable housing units. It actually has some elements to it that will displace some tenants, our goal is to create whole communities that are sustainable and environmentally friendly, and this bill is simply not that," said Couchiching Jubilee House fundraising coordinator Paige Jakobczak.

"Can we use government lands to build affordable housing? How can we look at controlling rents, so things don't get out of hand for people?" said Barrie district labour council president Michele MacDonald.

Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte MP Doug Downey told CTV News this week that the plan will open a mix of rental and ownership types. It will also unlock innovative approaches to design construction and get shovels in the ground faster.

Advocates say while a decision regarding this bill is expected to be finalized in the next few weeks, regardless of the outcome, they will continue to keep fighting for affordable housing here in the city and throughout the county.