Some communities in southwestern Ontario are ramping up to build more affordable housing, in an effort to combat the homelessness crisis.
It’s a priority that is top of mind for the City of St. Thomas and Elgin County, who have seen the completion of two new affordable housing projects over the last few years, with more underway.
“We’re also very actively looking at and building supportive housing as quickly as we can because we know that the true solution, the only solution to homelessness, is housing and housing with supports based on needs,” said Danielle Neilson, manager of housing stability services for St. Thomas-Elgin Social Services.
Neilson said their number of unhoused people has come down steadily over the last few years, thanks to social supports and continued efforts to build more housing.
St. Thomas-Elgin reduced its chronic homelessness by 30 per cent in seven months last year, she said.
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