Q2 (April 1 to June 30, 2020) to Board of Directors

Recommendation:

That Niagara Regional Housing Quarterly Report April 1 to June 30, 2020 be APPROVED and FORWARDED to the Public Health and Social Services Committee and subsequently to Regional and Municipal Councils for information.

Submitted by:	Approved by:
Donna Woiceshyn Chief Executive Officer	Walter Sendzik Chair

Highlights:

Appliction Activity 444 received & processed	Work Orders 2,302 issued
Capital Program 37 purchase orders issued 1 public tender closed 6 project ongoing	Rent Arrears = $110,958.69 or 8.60% of the monthly rent charges
Community Resources & Partnerships Offered supports to 742 new referrals Had partnerships with 44 community agencies	Non-Profit Housing Programs 62% deemed HEALTHY
Rent Supplement/Housing Allowance 1,465 units 10 new landlords	Niagara Renovates Inspections have started up again 8 homeowners approved for funding
Welcome Home Niagara 5 homeowners received assistance 1 was an NRH tenant	Housing First Project 9 Individuals / families housed
Appeals = 0 on hold due to COVID-19	New Development Hawkins/Dell Tambro broke ground on June 17

As the administrator of social housing for Niagara Region, Niagara Regional Housing (NRH) works to fulfill our vision and mission through six main areas of responsibility:

1. Public Housing (NRH Owned Units)
2. Non-Profit Housing Programs
3. Rent Supplement Program
4. Affordable Housing Program
5. Service Manager Responsibilities
6. Housing Access Centre and Centralized Waiting List

DAY-TO-DAY MAINTENANCE:

In Q2, 2,302 work orders were issued, representing $638,074.15. $11,595.81 of this amount was charged back to tenants who were held responsible for damages.

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
# of work orders issued	3,084	3,111	3,675	2,575	2,303

CAPITAL PROGRAM:

The Capital Program is responsible for maintaining the Public Housing (NRH Owned Units) asset and planning for future sustainability.

In Q2, 37 contract orders were issued and purchase orders issued and one public tender closed.

The Capital Program was responsible for six capital projects and 37 purchase orders valued at $576,271:

• six projects
  • Carlton Street – replacement of balconies and railings
  • 4900 Buckley – exterior insulation and finish system – canopies
  • 52 Ormond – building renovations
  • 10 Old Pine Trail – bathroom replacements (currently on hold)
  • Powerview/Galbraith/Wallace – bathrooms
• 37 RFPs and RFQs – various consulting services, elevator investigations, health and safety repairs, structural repairs (roofing) and pavement retrofits

As of June 30, 2020, $517,409 of the $8,454,858 budget (excluding emergency) has been committed and or actually spent (6.12%).

TENANT MOVE OUTS:

Move Outs By Reason

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
# of move outs	86	57	71	62	57

ARREARS:

NRH Housing Operations actively works to reduce rent arrears but saw an increase in 2020-Q2 due to COVID-19 and tenant job loss while they await provincial benefits.

	Jun 30, 2019	Sept 30, 2019	Dec 31, 2019	Mar 31, 2020	Jun 30, 2020
Rent charges for the month	$1,257,090.00	$1,267,460.00	$1,286,793.00	$1,302,721.00	$1,289,907.00
Accumulated rent arrears	$34,004.39	$35,549,21	$36,134.21	$71,135.25	$110,958.69
Arrears %	2.71%	2.80%	2.81%	5.46%	8.60%

INSURANCE:

In Q2, there was one claim settled, two claims expected to exceed the $25,000 deductible and three statement of claims served.

COMMUNITY RESOURCES AND PARTNERSHIPS:

In Q2, we had partnerships with 44 community agencies across Niagara. As a result of these partnerships, more than 200 support and enrichment activities were offered to tenants at NRH sites. Each partnership contributes to tenant lives and, in turn, the success of the Public Housing community as a whole:

• On-site community events, programs, workshops and activities were cancelled during the pandemic in accordance with provincial guidelines, however many partners found creative solutions to assist tenants during the lockdown.
  • The RAFT and Faith Welland distributed activity kits to family communities to keep children engaged in positive activities while after school programming was closed
  • Faith Welland gave out adult workbooks and hosted virtual competitions to reduce isolation in seniors communities
  • The Caring and Connecting Pen Pal Initiative provided pen pal letters that were warmly received by seniors
  • CyberSeniors and Castle promoted virtual activities and workshops for tenants who have internet access
  • Community Care of St. Catharines and Thorold donated care packages to a high-risk seniors building with no on-site supports. The packages included masks, hand sanitizer, gloves, gift certificates for taxis and groceries and a note of support from Community Care.

NRH is working with partners to determine how to safely open in-person programs as soon as possible.

Also during Q2, NRH Community Programs Coordinators (CPCs) made 538 wellness calls to check on tenants who are particularly vulnerable during the pandemic and offered supports to 742 new referrals of tenants in need of assistance. Of those new referrals, 43% were considered medium-high need, (e.g. child safety concerns, eviction, social issues, cognitive concerns). In particular, there was an increase in the number of tenants needing help with supports, referrals to other agencies and social issues.

As administrator of social housing for Niagara Region, NRH provides legislative oversight for 60 Non-Profit Housing Programs (non-profit and co-operative). Operational Reviews are conducted to determine the overall health of each.

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
Healthy	40	40	39	37	37
Routine Monitoring	17	17	18	21	21
Intensive Monitoring	1	1	1	0	0
Pre-PID (Project in Difficulty)	1	1	1	1	1
PID (Project in Difficulty)	1	1	1	1	1
TOTAL	60	60	60	60	60

NRH Housing Programs staff continue to work with Housing Providers as they move toward End of Operating Agreements (EOA) / End of Mortgage (EOM).

In Q2, there were 1,465 Rent Supplement/Housing Allowance units across Niagara. In the Rent Supplement program, tenants pay 30% of their gross monthly income directly to the private landlord and NRH subsidizes the difference up to the market rent for the unit. The Housing Allowance program is a short term program that provides a set allowance to help applicants on the wait list.

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
Fort Erie	32	32	30	32	31
Grimsby	26	24	22	18	22
Lincoln (Beamsville)	11	11	13	14	14
Niagara Falls	239	240	239	237	226
Niagara-on-the-Lake	5	5	5	5	4
Pelham	19	19	19	17	17
Port Colborne	62	65	64	67	64
St. Catharines	780	773	778	798	751
Thorold	61	56	57	61	61
Welland	203	200	198	192	259
West Lincoln	15	15	16	16	16
TOTAL	1,453	1,440	1,441	1,457	1,465

Variance in the Rent Supplement program are a reflection of fluctuation between agreements ending and new agreements taken up with landlords.

An In-Situ Rent Supplement Program Program has been developed to engage new landlords and offer applicants on the Centralized Waiting List an opportunity to receive Rent-Geared-to-Income assistance where they currently live. This removes the need for moving related expenses and broadens the network of landlords in business with NRH.

In Q2, NRH initiated new agreements with 10 new landlords.

NIAGARA RENOVATES PROGRAM:

The Niagara Renovates program provides assistance to low-to-moderate income homeowners for home repairs, accessibility modifications and the creation of secondary suites in single family homes.

Niagara Renovates inspections for new applicants for the 2020-2021 funding cycle have been placed on hold due to COVID-19. Inspections of completed work are being verified by homeowner photographs and formal inspections will take place as soon as possible and will include all areas inside and outside of the home to ensure compliance with program guidelines. Issues will be identified and a detailed Inspection Report provided to the homeowner.

NRH received $545,920 through the Ontario Priorities Housing Initiative (OPHI) for homeowner and housing provider renovations and repairs for the 2019/2020 period.

Eight homeowners have been approved for funding at this time and NRH is working toward re-opening these programs as we become more proficient at working under the COVID-19 rules.

HOMEOWNERSHIP PROGRAM – "WELCOME HOME NIAGARA":

The Homeownership program assists low-to-moderate income rental households to purchase their first home by providing a down payment loan.

In April 2020, NRH received $100,000 through the Ontario Priorities Housing Initiative (OPHI) program.

In Q2, five homeowners received assistance through Welcome Home Niagara. One of these was an NRH tenant.

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
# of homeowners assisted	4	6	7	4	5

HOUSING FIRST PROGRAM:

The Housing First program helps people move quickly from homelessness to their own home by providing supports to help difficult to house individuals find and keep housing.

In Q2, nine individuals/families were housed through the Housing First program. Since 2012, Housing First has helped 460 individuals/families.

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
# individuals/families housed	23	15	16	13	9
# of Housing First units (at quarter end)	198	197	202	199	201

17 of these Housing First units were created with NRH’s new development at 527 Carlton Street in St. Catharines.

RENTAL HOUSING (NEW DEVELOPMENT):

NRH New Development

Hawkins Street/Dell Avenue, Niagara Falls
Ontario Priorities Housing Initiative (OPHI)	$3,600,000
NRH Reserves	$3,061,500
Regional Development Charges	$14,132,500
Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation Seed Funding	$106,000
TOTAL	$20,900,000	73

Hawkins Street/Dell Avenue
• Kickoff meeting with Tambro & Construction team held May 28 via zoom
• Consultant kickoff meeting held June 8 via zoom
• Issued for Construction (IFC) drawings released by Raimondo and distributed to construction team June 10
• Building Permits obtained June 12
• Tambro site mobilization started the week of June 15
• Tambro broke ground on site June 17
• Contract documents signed by NRH June 29
• Achieved milestones required for the release of 50% of Ontario Priorities Housing Initiative (OPHI) funding (documents have been submitted)
• Site trailer set up on Building A site (north east corner of lot)
• Fencing (ready fence and silt fence) installed around the perimeters of both sites
• Surveying completed (benchmarks, building locations, property lines)
• Site shaping/grading – top soil removed from both sites; Building A parking lot has been brought down to sub-base and is ready for base prep
• Conflicting trees have been removed from site via Tambro
• Storm and sanitary piping delivered to site
• Water main has been connected to the city main and roughed into building location (stubbed up in mechanical room location)
• Started excavation for footings at Building A

Affordable Housing Unit #'s by Municipality

	NRH Owned	Housing Providers	Rent Supplement	New Development
Fort Erie	116	389	31	0
Grimsby	55	0	22	0
Lincoln (Beamsville)	61	41	12	0
Niagara Falls	884	828	239	140
NOTL	40	0	5	0
Pelham	0	0	19	0
Port Colborne	88	139	64	35
St. Catharines	1,017	1,666	775	346
Thorold	29	85	57	46
Welland	394	425	194	167
West Lincoln (Smithville)	0	86	15	0
Region-wide	2,684	3,659	1,433	734*

Note: there are no affordable housing units in Wainfleet
*166 New Development units are NRH Owned

APPEALS:

In Q2, no appeals were heard - they have been on hold due to COVID-19 but will be resuming virtually in Q3.

	2019-Q2	2019-Q3	2019-Q4	2020-Q1	2020-Q2
# of appeals	12	10	11	11	0

APPLICATION ACTIVITY:

CENTRALIZED WAITING LIST:

		2019- Q2	2019- Q3	2019- Q4	2020- Q1	2020- Q2
		# of households
A	Rent-Geared-to-income (RGI) waiting list:
	Niagara resident RGI waiting list	4,926	5,012	5,154	5,322	5,264
	Applicants from outside Niagara	849	897	977	1,045	1,078
TOTAL RGI waiting list:		5,775	5,909	6,131	6,367	6,342
	Housing Allowance: a set allowance to help applicants on the waiting list with affordability in the private market until housed in an RGI unit	742	747	742	739	723
A1	RGI waiting list demographics:
	Seniors	2,344	2,362	2,455	2,514	2,487
	Adults no dependents	1,881	1,922	1,979	2,041	2,026
	Adults with dependents	1,550	1,625	1,697	1,812	1,829
A2	RGI list further segmented (#’s included in A & A1):
	SPP – Special Provincial Priority (Ministry Priority): helps victims of violence separate permanently from their abuser	148	165	148	146	142
	URG – Urgent (Local Priority): for applicants with mobility barriers and/or extreme hardship where their current accommodation puts them at extreme risk and/or causes hardship	109	130	142	152	144
	UHML – Homeless (Local Priority): provides increased opportunity for placement to homeless households	1,012	1,007	1,075	1,145	1,119
	SUP – Supportive/Transitional: provides targeted, provisional services to assist individuals to transition beyond basic needs to more permanent housing	11	12	16	23	10
B	In addition, NRH manages:
	Overhoused: households who are living in subsidized accommodation with more bedrooms than they are eligible for	176	181	174	176	173
	Transfer: households who are currently living in subsidized accommodation and have requested a transfer to another provider	573	603	613	635	637
TOTAL RGI households on waiting list managed by NRH:		6,524	6,693	6,918	7,178	7,152
C	NRH maintains a waiting list for market rent units (62 Non-Profit Housing Programs):
	Market: applicants who have applied for a market rent unit in the Non-Profit Housing Programs portfolio	723	752	784	810	805
TOTAL households on waiting list managed by NRH:		7,274	7,445	7,702	7,988	7,157
TOTAL individuals on waiting list managed by NRH:		12,577	13,059	13,587	14,197	14,180

Note: the above chart includes only those who apply to the Centralized Waiting List and does not capture the full number of those in need of affordable housing in Niagara.

ESTIMATED WAIT TIMES:

CITY	SENIORS Age 55 and older		SINGLES Age 16-54		HOUSEHOLDS WITH DEPENDENTS
	Bachelor	1 Bed	Bachelor	1 Bed	2 Bed	3 Bed	4 Bed	5 Bed
	YEARS
Forst Erie	-	11	3	7	2	2	6	-
Grimsby	-	5	-	-	-	-	-	-
Lincoln	-	6	-	10	6	10	-	-
Niagara Falls	5	7	-	18	5	5	12	16
Niagara-on-the-Lake	-	6	-	-	-	-	-	-
Port Colborne	-	8	-	12	5	3	4	-
St. Catharines	-	5	9	16	3	3	3	11
Thorold	-	7	-	13	3	11	-	-
Welland	-	6	7	16	7	3	8	7
West Lincoln	-	5	-	-	10	6	-	-

- no units of this size available in this community

Please note:

• wait time information can fluctuate and is an approximation only
• wait times may not reflect the actual time one may wait for affordable housing