City's Town and Gown committee says there's a shortfall of almost 5,000 beds for students in Waterloo
Committee did a similar study in 2017 and found a surplus of beds at the time
The chair of Waterloo's Town and Gown committee says he hopes the results of a recent study looking into student housing will help inform the city staff and developers about what kind of housing is needed.
The committee's study found there's a shortfall of about 5,000 beds to accommodate students coming to the city for school and found that many students struggle to find housing at an affordable price.
"There's two components that make up the short fall, and that's that on the supply side, there's just not enough purpose-built student housing that's close to campus, and the demand continues to increase as the number of students continue to grow," Chris Reed, chair of the Town and Gown committee, told The Morning Edition Thursday.
The City of Waterloo is home to a Conestoga College campus, the University of Waterloo (UW) and Wilfrid Laurier University, which brings thousands of students to the area.
Conestoga College recently announced it purchased two buildings in the region to help house its students. The UW says it provides a residence for all first-year students and are working on a new strategy to build more on-campus housing. Laurier said its partnered with businesses like Settle-In Relocation and Spaces Shared to support students in finding affordable housing.
Surplus of beds in 2017
Reed said the committee is made up of different stakeholders from the universities, the college, city staff and local residents. Student accommodation has been a top priority for the committee for over a decade, he said.
"We know that appropriate living accommodation for students is a critical element to their success and so this same type of study has been done multiple times over the last 10 years," Reed said.
He added when the committee last did the study in 2017, the research they did found there was a surplus of about 1,000 beds at the time.
Reed said he is encouraged that there is a lot of development happening in the area, which will help add more housing for students. According to the report, which was presented at Waterloo city council on Sept.11, there are approximately 4,660 proposed on-and off-campus beds coming down the pipeline.
Reed said he hopes the study helps stakeholders, developers and municipalities make informed decisions around zoning bylaws and construction.
"The main purpose of doing this research is really to help everybody get an accurate snap shot of what's happening out there," he said.
Reed adds the committee can also help students by sharing information about tenant rights and what they can expect when they come to the city.
U of Guelph wants to hear from students
Meanwhile the University of Guelph will launch a survey, which will ask students about their current and future housing needs. The survey will help inform the school's Student Housing Strategy, the university said in a release.
The university will set up focus groups for students, staff, faculty and the community to talk about accommodations, affordability, amenities and support services, the school said.
The university said roughly 400 students took part in a similar survey in the summer and aims to triple that response number this fall.
"The information we gather from these focus groups and surveys will help inform the strategy immediately and, in the long term, provide sustainable solutions to support student housing," says Ed Townsley, associate vice-president of ancillary services said in a release.
"Our efforts to help our students in accessing housing, both on-campus and off-campus are designed to improve life and enhance academic and career success for all members of our learning community."
U of G says it has typically offered on-campus housing to 20 per cent of its students and added another 160 residence spaces this year by leasing a former hotel property.
Give me shelter: The hunt for housing in Waterloo region is a series by CBC Kitchener-Waterloo that hears from the people struggling to secure the housing they want and need. They might be making do with non-traditional housing: a tent, a room shared with multiple people or their parents' basement. We look at how the basic need for housing is not being met for many people in a rapidly-growing region of Ontario.
