Governments Of Canada And Saskatchewan Celebrate The Opening Of Affordable Rental Homes For People With Intellectual Disabilities

Released on June 22, 2023

The Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan today announced the grand opening of eight new affordable homes for people with intellectual disabilities and mental health challenges in Saskatoon. 

Today, Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, Social Services Minister and Minister Responsible for Saskatchewan Housing Corporation Gene Makowsky, alongside representatives from the Saskatchewan Housing Corporation, the City of Saskatoon and the National Affordable Housing Corporation (NAHC), officially celebrated the opening of eight new homes at Aspen Heights in Saskatoon.

The newly constructed homes are located at 345 Feheregyhazi Boulevard in Saskatoon and include eight stacked townhome units, consisting of six two-bedroom units, and two three-bedroom units. The project provides affordable housing to ten individuals with intellectual disabilities or mental health challenges. 

Funding provided to the Aspen Heights project includes:

• $280,000 from the Canada – Saskatchewan Bilateral Agreement under the National Housing Strategy;
• $260,000 from the National Affordable Housing Corporation; and
• $204,130 from the City of Saskatoon.

"Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home," said Hussen. "That's why the Government of Canada is building eight new affordable homes for people with intellectual disabilities and mental health challenges in Saskatoon. This investment, and others like it across the country, represent the Government of Canada's commitment to improving the quality of life for Canadians most in need. This is just one of the many ways the National Housing Strategy is ensuring no one is left behind." 

"The Government of Saskatchewan is proud to support this project that allows people to live independently in their community," Makowsky said. "Our government will continue to work with partners to meet our commitment to improve housing affordability and better support people and families in greatest housing need."

"Every project across the entire housing spectrum is critically important to our community at this time," City of Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark said. "Affordable housing is especially important. In this 56-unit rental development, 17 units will be affordable rental units, of which eight will be supportive units made available to high needs individuals with intellectual disabilities and mental health afflictions in Saskatoon. Thank you to all funding partners involved in this project and for making these units available to those who need them most." 

"Expanding our affordable rentals to persons supported by our partners at the Canadian Mental Health Association - Saskatoon was an easy decision for the NAHC," National Affordable Housing Corporation Chief Executive Officer Tyler Mathies said. "For years we've heard from health professionals, community organizations and people living with mental health afflictions that there is a growing and desperate need for safe, independent supportive living options in Saskatoon. Thanks to contributions from CMHC, SHC and the City of Saskatoon we have been able to deliver inclusive, supportive and welcoming housing options to help address this gap for the community; we are hopeful that we will be able to offer more units like this in the future."

Quick Facts:

• Canada's National Housing Strategy (NHS) is a 10-year, $82-plus billion plan that will give more Canadians a place to call home.
  • NHS is built on strong partnerships between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, and continuous engagement with others, including municipalities, Indigenous governments and organizations, and the social and private housing sectors. This includes consultations with Canadians from all walks of life, and people with lived experience of housing need.
  • All NHS investments delivered by the federal, provincial, and territorial governments will respect the key principles of NHS that support partnerships, people and communities.
• In 2019, the Government of Saskatchewan and the Government of Canada entered into an agreement through the National Housing Strategy. The Canada-Saskatchewan Bilateral Agreement will invest $449.9 million over 10 years, which is cost matched by the federal and provincial governments.
• NAHC is a non-profit organization that works with private home builders, government units, and other non-profit organizations to facilitate the construction of affordable housing units in Saskatchewan. Since 2020, SHC have worked with NAHC to develop 31 affordable housing units (including this project) in Saskatoon and Regina, through the RDP. 

Associated Links:

•  As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC's aim is that by 2030, everyone in Canada has a home they can afford and that meets their needs. For more information, please visit cmhc.ca or follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.
• To find out more about the National Housing Strategy, please visit www.placetocallhome.ca.
• In November 2019, the Government of Saskatchewan released the Saskatchewan's Growth Plan: the Next Decade of Growth 2020-2030, which sets out the government's vision for a province of 1.4 million people by 2030. The Plan identifies principles, goals and actions to ensure Saskatchewan is capturing the opportunities and meeting the challenges of a growing province. Since 2007, the Government of Saskatchewan has invested more than $806 million to develop or repair more than 18,000 housing units across our province. To learn more, visit www.saskatchewan.ca. 

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For more information, contact:

Shiraz Keushgerian
Office of the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion
Email: Shiraz.Keushgerian@infc.gc.ca 

Media Relations
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
Email: media@cmhc-schl.gc.ca

Media Relations
Social Services
Regina
Phone: 306-787-3610
Email: MediaMSS@gov.sk.ca