North Bay City Councillor Mark King has been re-elected to lead the Board of Directors of the District of Nipissing Social Services Administration Board for the standard one-year term following an internal vote, Wednesday.
"I don't think there is any doubt, housing is the number one issue," King tells BayToday in the wake of his re-election. "Over the past six or seven years, we have all gone through a pretty rough time, with all the challenges facing social services."
King's colleagues narrowly gave him another mandate in a close vote with North Bay City Councillor Lana Mitchell, who will serve as vice-chair of the 12-member board. North Bay Mayor Peter Chirico will head the finance and administration committee and North Bay City Councillor Chris Mayne will chair the Nipissing District Housing Corporation board. A chairperson will be elected for DNSSAB's community services committee during its February meeting. All terms expire on Dec. 31.
"I'm glad to be back. I certainly enjoy the position," says King, who has now served as board chair over parts of three different terms of council. "I have an awful lot of experience that I can bring to the table," he adds, pointing to not only his years serving as a councillor but also as an advocate for the various communities in the district.
At the committee level, the initial 12 per cent levy increase to its member municipalities in this year's proposed DNSSAB budget has been whittled down to an approximately three per cent increase with the planned use of $1.8 million from reserves.
Chief among the issues that need to be addressed by DNSSAB is the increased operating costs of moving to the third phase of the Northern Pines facility on Chippewa Street West and the low-barrier shelter also located on that campus, according to King.
"The overage at the low-barrier shelter and the massive amounts of dollars that we're spending to place people in hotel rooms has got to stop. We've got to find a method to house people, period," he says. "That's our number one problem."
Board member and North Bay Deputy Mayor Maggie Horsfield asked during the open portion of Wednesday's meeting about the low-barrier shelter and Director of Housing Services Stacey Cyopeck relayed that it is at capacity every night and the daytime program at Northern Pines regularly has 25-30 people accessing it. Furthermore, hotels are used as overflow shelters, often for up to the allowable level of 20 people per night.
According to the provincial standard, King says the housing shortage has been lowered to 201 units and he is certain that number will drop as NDHC and DNSSAB make use of the funds generated from several real estate transactions, including the sale of a surplus building on Main Street West. The estimated waiting list for subsidized housing has surpassed 900 people, with wait times of between one to 15 years, depending on the client's housing needs and desired location, with priority given to those seeking refuge from domestic violence.
Following a stalled housing project, NDHC has shifted gears and expects the sale of some of its holdings on Brookes Street will still result in development. The asking price for that property is in excess of $3 million but was purchased for considerably less.
King also points to the acquisition of Mackay Homes and its 65 affordable units for seniors as an example of the organization bolstering its housing stock without building from the ground up.
"This is a very thoughtful, cooperative, and advanced board that will work to find answers to the problems we face in the region," he adds. "Thanks to our work over the past few years through our housing authority to put together surpluses and reserves, I think this new board has been well-positioned financially to leverage those funds into what I would consider a major social housing build."
With the local housing deficit top of mind, King says many members of the board will be attending the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA) conference that kicks off this weekend in Toronto. The delegation will meet with the provincial assistant minister of housing, plus Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Michael Tibollo, from which King says crucial funding is available to help tackle the issues.
"We've been working on plans for four years for a social housing build," King advises. "What I want to see is a private-public, connected build, in full cooperation with the federal and provincial governments. We can make a major difference in this four-year term."
