Ottawa says it has made progress on its housing and homelessness plan, but the city sees challenges ahead as it continues to try to ensure everybody is housed.
“One of the clearest lessons from the past five years is that housing on its own is not enough without access to mental-health care, addiction services and primary care, many people will struggle to remain housed despite being provided with a place to live,” Mayor Mark Sutcliffe told city council on April 8, where councillors considered a review of the 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan.
The plan is reviewed every five years. According to a city report, since 2020 “approximately $1 billion from all three levels of government has been invested in housing and homelessness in Ottawa.” The city has completed 554 affordable housing units and 329 supportive housing units, preserved more than 25,000 social housing units, created 3,279 new housing benefits and started a Short-Term Rental By-law and a Vacant Unit Tax By-law to protect housing supply.
A review of the homelessness plan found the number of those experiencing homelessness rose 13 per cent from 2021 to 2024. while the number unsheltered or in encampments rose five per cent and the need for supportive housing rose by nine per cent.
“On any given night, close to 3,000 people experienced homelessness in Ottawa,” said Sutcliffe. “And whereas of those 3,000 people, 450 are on the wait list for supportive housing, the only housing solution suitable for individuals facing complex health and social challenges.”
The refreshed 10-year plan, which will run to 2035, specifically targets housing and homelessness needs of those that are on the low-moderate income scale.
A 2024 housing needs assessment showed median monthly rent increased 61.3 per cent from 2014 to 2024, outpacing the median household income, which which rose 46.6 per cent from 2006 to 2021.
To advance the development of affordable homes, Sutcliffe said additional funding was added.
“The 2026 budget included an additional capital investment of $23.25 million in affordable housing, bringing our total investment during this term council to more than $105 million.”
Orleans West-Innes Coun. Laura Dudas said the refreshed plan also focuses more on expanding community partnerships.
“We don’t want to assume that people can just function on their own supports in the community surrounding them,” said Dudas, who also chairs the Community Services Committee. “So we’re trying to partner with entities who do provide those services.”
During the review, Sutcliffe introduced a motion to double the rate in which they build supportive housing units.
“We will never be a successful city until everyone has a safe place to sleep at night. That’s why today I’m tabling a motion calling for doubling the rate at which we build supportive units,” he said.
“Investing in supportive housing is a long-term investment that shifts spending from emergency response to prevention and stability. It keeps people housed by identifying issues early.”
The motion, seconded by Dudas, asked staff to consider funding options as a part of budget 2027, to form a supportive housing fund. The motion was unanimously approved.
Dudas said she will also try to secure better and faster partnerships to aid in the building of homes.
“We’re trying to streamline the process to partner better with Ottawa community housing, which is an arm’s length entity of the city, so that we can make sure that they’re building faster,” Dudas told Capital Current.
“That they’re not having to jump through red tape just to build. We want to make sure that we’re kind of unclogging the system as we go.”
