The Ottawa Valley Affordable Housing Alliance (OVAHA) is making affordable housing and homelessness a key issue ahead of the upcoming municipal elections.
In recent weeks, OVAHA has held community town hall meetings across Renfrew County, resulting in five local committees forming in Pembroke, Bonnechere Valley, Madawaska Valley, North Algona Wilberforce, and Killaloe, Hagarty, and Richards Townships.
"Every community is struggling, especially with the smaller communities," says Cameron Montgomery, a member of the OVAHA steering committee.Montgomery says the lack of affordable housing in Renfrew County became prominent during the pandemic when people from larger cities were moving to the area and buying up rental properties at inflated prices.
At The Grind Pembroke, a local community kitchen, executive director Jerry Novak says they have seen a rise in homelessness within the city.Novak says the issue of homelessness is no different than what is seen in big cities such as Ottawa. While the number of homeless people may be smaller, the causes are similar despite the more rural setting.The City of Pembroke say they've been trying to attract developers to build affordable housing, but none are interested in taking on the project.
Montgomery says that the creation of OVAHA's local committees is the first step in seeing their vision of affordable housing take shape in their communities. "A single family home that has an additional unit or that sort of thing," Montgomery describes. "There's not very many duplexes or four-plexes or anything around here."
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