The growing anti-poverty campaign in Hamilton may get another boost tomorrow when councillors receive more than two dozen recommendations to improve the city's housing situation. The proposals arise out of a major housing study that has found that over 14,000 tenant households spending more than half of their income on rent.

This represents nearly one-quarter of the city's tenants, all of whom are considered to be in immediate danger of homelessness. A further similar percentage are using between 30% and 50% of their income to keep a roof over their heads.

Renters make up slightly more than a third of Hamilton households, and 46% of them are facing a housing affordability problem - defined as using more than 30% of their income for shelter. The statistics are drawn from the 2001 census, and there is some indication the situation has worsened since then.

That's suggested by a rapidly growing waiting list for social housing. In 1998 there were just over 4000 individuals or families requesting rent-geared-to-income homes. By the end of last year that figure had nearly doubled to 7914. That's nearly seven times the average waiting list in the 1983-1993 period.

A major part of the crisis is the lack of new apartments and social housing units. In the last decade and a half only 250 new apartments have been built. Six to nine times that many houses have been constucted every year during that period. In 2003, apartments made up less than 1% of the new housing built in Hamilton .

This trend is exacerbated by the conversion of apartments to condominiums. There have been about 1400 units converted in the past decade in Hamilton.

The social housing picture is even more disastrous. Construction of new units was essentially halted in 1996 by the actions of the Mike Harris government. The six units finished that year in Hamilton are the only ones that had been added by the end of last year. The chart showing the number of units per year since 1996 simply displays a string of zeros.

The report notes: "What is very clear, almost 10 years after the social housing supply stream was turned off, is that it is no coincidence that we have more homeless on our streets in Hamilton and across Ontario, we have more people utilizing emergency shelters and hotels and we have more people that are economically vulnerable to eviction and potentially losing their home." Today, Hamilton needs a 50% increase in its 14,496 social housing units just to address the current waiting list.

The recommendations coming before the Public Health and Community Services committee tomorrow morning are dominated by calls for more provincial and federal support for housing. Most of the rest call for more study or fall into the category of 'seek and consider' directions that try to start shifting some of the emphasis in city policies.

These include instructions to establish an "Eviction Prevention Policy"and an "Anti-Discrimination Policy", as well as a proposal to include a statement of housing principles in the new Official Plan.

Perhaps the most significant recommendation would follow the adoption of that Official Plan, expected no earlier than next fall. It calls for consideration of allowing "accessory apartments as-of-right throughout the City". This policy was actually legislated by the Bob Rae government in 1994 but quickly repealed by Harris. It would allow the establishment of an apartment unit in existing houses anywhere in Hamilton.

Such a policy is widely recognized as the fastest and cheapest way to increase affordable housing. Toronto adopted it in 2000, with a number of restrictions including not expanding the physical size of the house, providing parking, and a limitation of two units per building. Eligible houses there must also be single-detached or duplexes and over five years old.

The Hamilton recommendations make no mention of lowering the tax rates on apartment units. Current tax rates for apartments are 2.74 times the rate imposed on single-family homes. This means a $55,000 apartment unit pays the same taxes as a $150,000 house.

Since the late 1990s the province has been pushing municipalities to standardize their tax levels. Hamilton council has used to justify dramatic reductions in business taxes over the last four years, cutting commercial taxes by 36% and large industrial taxes by 38%. The disparity between single family houses and apartments has narrowed slightly in that period in Hamilton because provincial rules have forbidden any increases on the latter, and taxes have continued to rise on single-family units.

The full housing report including the staff recommendations can be examined on-line at
http://www.city.hamiltosn.on.ca/clerk/agendas-minutes-reports/
public-health-com-serv/2004/Nov09/HCS04037a_PD04296.pdf.