Town Hall on Affordable Housing Solutions October 11, 2006

A Town Hall focused on creating solutions to the need for affordable housing. We know what the problems are. City-wide, the CMHC approximates a rental vacancy of 0.6%. Some sixty thousand Calgary households risk losing their homes to escalating rents and condominium conversions. An estimated 250,000 people are expected to move to our city over the next decade. It’s been over two decades since Calgary has seen any significant rental housing construction.

Key Questions:
We are all acutely aware that it’s time to get on with solving the problem. The questions to be addressed by the guest panelists at the Town Hall include: What policies need to be in place to enable the creation of safe and affordable housing units? What kind of affordable housing strategy best balances the rights and protection of tenants with the rights and needs of property owners? What are the most effective roles for the province to play that will lead to the development of an adequate supply of affordable housing? What are the short-term solutions to catch up with the demand for affordable housing over the next couple of years? What long-term strategies to prevent the crisis from redeveloping?

Format:
The perspectives of all stakeholders are integral to forming viable solutions. Panelists and invited guests such as you have been selected as representative of as many perspectives as possible. Key participants are:
Host: Dave Taylor, MLA Calgary Currie and Municipal Affairs Critic
Moderator: Kirk Heuser, Reporter, CTV
Panelists:
• Joe Ceci, City of Calgary Affordable Housing Committee, Ward 9 Alderman
• David McIlveen, Director of Community Development, Boardwalk Rental Communities
• John Currie, Chairman, Calgary Community Land Trust, HomeCo.
• Grant Neufeld, Calgary Housing Action Initiative

Schedule:
7:00 - Pre-event greeting and briefing, and light refreshments in the atrium of the amphitheatre at Western Canada High.
7:30 - Opening remarks, Dave Taylor
7:35 - Introduction of Panelists by Kirk Heuser
7:40 - Panelist presentations (presentation order to be determined).
8:10 - Input from invited guests and concerned constituents
9:20 - Summary and closing remarks, Dave Taylor

Official Website: http://housingaction.ca/