'Give the dollars to the small, rural communities'
Mayors in rural eastern Ontario say they can help alleviate the province's housing crunch if given access to funding and resources typically concentrated in larger cities.
"Give the dollars to the small, rural communities and we'll darn well do it for you," Tom Deline, mayor of Centre Hastings, a community of just under 5,000 people, told CBC News.
Deline and other Hastings County mayors expressed frustration that despite devoting staff time and money to apply for provincial and federal housing programs, their proposals have been rejected while major cities receive millions.
"We're just saying, 'Come on, give us a break here... we're trying to be part of it,'" Deline said after his municipality's $275,000 application to the federal Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) was denied.
According to Deline's calculations, it would cost the federal government around $30,000 per unit to build homes in Centre Hastings, compared to $45,000 in Toronto. "It's to get them to understand where the best bang is for the dollar," he said.
Paul Jenkins, mayor of Bancroft, shared a similar experience, with his community's applications to the HAF and Rapid Housing Initiative also rejected.
"We're not seeing any money that's being allocated to rural Ontario," Jenkins lamented.
A Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) spokesperson stated that while 10 agreements were signed with rural and remote Ontario communities through the HAF, the evaluation process was "highly competitive" due to high demand.
Read more: More work required in ensuring accessibility of funding, according to housing advocates
The mayors argued that increasing housing stock in rural areas could help ease pressures in urban centres as residents relocate. But Jenkins noted rural municipalities face unique challenges like rising homelessness with fewer resources.
Both mayors vowed to continue pursuing housing funds, but questioned whether it's worthwhile given the lack of feedback and results so far from upper levels of government.
"We're just not seeing any results, we're not even getting feedback," Jenkins said.
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