Talks have begun between the City of Ottawa and the province after Ontario decided to give the nation’s capital less than $1 million in new money for homelessness.
In a letter dated April 28, Housing Minister Steve Clark told Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe that Ottawa was receiving a smaller portion of the new funding aimed at redressing homelessness across the province because the city received too much in previous allocations.
It is no longer news that the province has announced a $202-million annual boost to homelessness funding over three years.
Meanwhile, Ottawa is set to receive $845,100 annually from that new pot, bringing its yearly funds to deal with homelessness to $48.5 million.
In a statement obtained by newsmen, Clark’s office clarified that Ottawa still ranks second in the province in terms of total homelessness funding from the province.
The city sits far behind Toronto, which is set to receive $217 million of the annual $695 million in the Homelessness Prevention Program and Indigenous Supportive Housing Program. Official records have it that from the new funding, Toronto is slated to get $48 million.
Displeased by the development, Ottawa’s mayor has reportedly asked the province to review its decision, noting it has a funding gap of $37 million to maintain current service levels for those experiencing homelessness.
Sutcliffe said “I am continuing to communicate closely and regularly with senior leaders in the provincial government to ensure Ottawa’s specific needs are understood and we receive our fair share of funding”.
The province said they are listening. Victoria Podbielski, a spokeswoman for Clark said “We are continuing to engage with Ottawa to ensure the city’s unique housing and homelessness-related needs are addressed”.
It was gathered that Ottawa’s mayor wrote to Premier Doug Ford on April 24 asking him to ensure the city “gets its fair share of critical investments” the province is making on homelessness.
Sutcliffe believes that Ottawa should have received $16 million to $18 million from the new money based on what the province gave Toronto.
In a statement, Sutcliffe wrote “Like Toronto, our homeless population includes many individuals with high acuity needs”.
“Smaller, nearby municipalities send their highest acuity unhoused individuals to our city. We are doing all we can to support them, but it’s impossible to do so without adequate operational funding.”
According to the mayor, the shortfall will force Ottawa to cancel 54 supportive housing units that were set to become operational within 18 months and it will not be able to build upwards of 850 new affordable housing options every year.
Recall that the province recently changed its funding model, combining several homelessness funds into one. Clark told Sutcliffe the new model is partly in response to “serious concerns raised by” the auditor general in 2021.
Clark wrote “This audit concluded that previous allocations of homelessness funding were based on outdated data, did not accurately reflect local need and, on occasion, lacked any evidence to justify spending decisions”.
“The revised funding model ensures that all Ontario residents will have equal access to the province’s substantially increased homelessness prevention funding, rather than advantaging any one community at the expense of the others.”
Reacting to the development, interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said “Doug Ford is abandoning the City of Ottawa and its residents”.
“A more thorough understanding of the exact calculation data, in addition to applicable adjustments to the final allocations, is required to understand how Ottawa’s allocation compares with other communities and evaluate the fairness as it relates to need,” said Paul Lavigne, director of housing with the city.
“To date, the city has not received the requested clarification from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing.”
