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Edmonton mayor renews call for provincial housing funding help amid $3.9B surplus

A supportive housing complex for Terrace Heights is expected to house 46 people with chronic needs and is just one of several housing projects the city hopes the province will help with. (City of Edmonton - image credit)
A supportive housing complex for Terrace Heights is expected to house 46 people with chronic needs and is just one of several housing projects the city hopes the province will help with. (City of Edmonton - image credit)

Edmonton is renewing calls for the province to fund more than 450 units of permanent supportive housing after the province announced Tuesday that it has an unforeseen $3.9 billion surplus in this year's finances.

Mayor Amarjeet Sohi has been asking the Alberta government to provide the money to operate the special housing units since January. At that time, the yearly cost sat at $9 million. Now, it's $11 million.

On Tuesday, after a community and public services committee meeting, Sohi told reporters that the revised fiscal update bodes well.

"I hope the province will see this as an opportunity to allocate more money to our city because now they have the capacity to do so through this surplus and also on an ongoing basis," he said.

The city moved quickly on plans for five modular permanent supportive housing projects under the federal government's rapid housing initiative in 2020 and 2021.

The projects are in the McArthur Industrial, King Edward Park, Terrace Heights, Inglewood and Westmount neighbourhoods.

The city then approved support for social agencies to convert two hotels: the former Sands Inn and Suites and the former Days Inn and later approved the Coliseum Inn conversion project, for a total of 453 units opening within the next year.

"Unfortunately to this date, we haven't heard any confirmed support from the province but I'm optimistic that our last meeting with the ministers and the premier was very positive," Sohi said.

Sohi repeated another call for the province to give Edmonton an equal share of funding for shelters and supportive housing.

He said he's met with several cabinet ministers and Premier Jason Kenney over the past couple of months to discuss the city's needs.

"They're all aware," he said Tuesday. "We are getting far less money to end houselessness in Edmonton compared to other cities in Alberta, particularly compared to Calgary."

Per the City, Edmonton's homeless population doubled during the COVID-19 pandemic, and as of Tuesday, Homeward Trust listed some 2,750 people as experiencing homelessness in Edmonton.

In a statement Tuesday, Jason Luan, minister of community and social services, said operational funding for the new units will be a mixture of provincial and federal funding but no specific numbers were made available.

Luan said the government recognizes the City of Edmonton is dealing with an increase in homelessness during the pandemic.

"We will continue to work with them to explore all options to ensure vulnerable people are protected and can get the help they need," Luan wrote.

City takes new steps 

At the committee meeting Tuesday, councillors reviewed a bundle of reports related to shelter standards, affordable housing and supportive housing projects.

Sohi proposed a motion aimed at speeding up new affordable housing projects.

The committee agreed the city should outline options to reduce costs and timelines on building non-market, affordable housing in Edmonton.

That includes possibly rezoning surplus school sites and other city-owned property to facilitate expedited construction.

They also agreed to move ahead with a new kind of project: a fire station with permanent supportive units in the Walker neighbourhood at Ellerslie Road and Watt Boulevard.

The report describes the co-located station as a three-bay fire hall with 64 units of supportive housing attached, likely above the main bay, dorms, studies.

An Alberta Health Services emergency medical services station is also in the plan.

"The travel time and overall response time to an emergency event will be greatly reduced," the report says.

Keren Tang, Councillor for Ward Karhiio, said more support is needed on the south side of the city.

"Housing and homelessness is no longer just a downtown or core issue," Tang said. "We're seeing encampments on the deep south side, people sleeping behind parks and bus shelters in Mill Woods, panhandlers along stretches of main corridor roads."

The final funding request would be presented ahead of the 2023-2026 capital budget cycle.