N.S. is offering land for affordable housing. Some say there is a catch

Larry Thomas walks to the edge of a piece of forest in Hammonds Plains, where he'd hoped by now to see shovels in the ground. 

"We're having a hell of a time getting started," said Thomas, a retired real estate broker now working with a new non-profit organization, One World Building Association.

Last June, the province awarded the non-profit a parcel off Hammonds Plains Road in the Highland Park neighbourhood where they plan to build 32 townhouses. 

The Land for Housing Program has been billed as a way to create affordable housing quickly by offering up provincial lands to non-profits or developers for a low fee. But it is drawing criticism for not going far enough to remove red tape, or ensuring housing units will be affordable in the long term.

CBC reviewed the status of all 10 projects announced over the past three years and found two have withdrawn, one is under construction and the others are in various planning stages.

People trying to build units say they've run into challenges including unsuitable land, neighbours that don't support the plans and long wait times for government funding to pay for the projects. They also have to navigate municipal development rules, which some say take months and offer no guarantees of approval. 

A  development agreement process can take more than a year before coming before community council, which could reject it — and Thomas said their group doesn't have that kind of time given the older age of board members. One World is made up of people from the private industry, including local developer Saeid Saberi.

Thomas wants to sidestep the regular municipal process, and said Halifax should approve their project now — while they're gathering funds for preliminary work like site plans and environmental studies. They would then be able to get building quickly "if it all checks out."

"I think anybody with experience looking at what we want to do — and the fact that people don't have a place to live — you would say, 'We should expedite this,'" said Thomas.

One World has not yet filed any documents with HRM, but has instead attempted to get the province to approve their concept.

The group has asked both Housing Minister John Lohr, and the provincial-municipal task force focused on housing in HRM, to designate the land as a special planning area which gives Lohr's office the power to make planning decisions. Both of those requests were declined.

2 groups pulled out

Two groups have withdrawn their projects after they decided their parcels weren't suitable for development.

The Spryfield Social Enterprise and Affordable Housing Society backed out of creating 48 units in a mixed-use building off Herring Cove Road because community members raised concerns.

The Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia got 3.3 hectares on Tremain Crescent in Windsor, N.S., and planned to build 137 units, mostly made up of townhouses.

But executive director Michael Kabalen said an environmental study showed only "a very small portion" could be developed without disturbing wetland, which they don't want to do. They could only build about eight units in that space, he said, making the project unsustainable. 

"Those additional costs were something that we were concerned that would drive the cost of the project up, and eventually drive the rents up for the residents," Kabalen said.

When asked whether the province should have assessed the land themselves, he said that would only slow the process down.

The reality is the best parcels for development in Nova Scotia, like former schools or hospitals, have all been sold off over the years — so what's left to work with isn't ideal, Kabalen said. 

But he still sees a silver lining — that non-profit groups gain valuable experience each time they compete for a parcel or plan a project.

"That's all important. If we're going to compete with for-profit developers, we need to have as many missed opportunities that we apply for and learn from, as we do successful ones," Kabalen said.

Non-profits need priority: advocate group

Trish McCourt, executive director of the Nova Scotia Non-Profit Housing Association, would like to see the province prioritize its members. She said getting land for a low fee through the program is vital for non-profits, because they don't have the same cash flow as developers that can quickly buy up land on the open market.

Non-profits usually offer even cheaper rents than required, and would keep them permanently affordable, she added. 

The province said the conditions of each project are determined on an individual basis but affordable rates must be at or below 80 per cent of average market rent and the average timeframe to keep that rate is 20 years.

Reviews of the program are "mixed," said McCourt, adding she's heard from frustrated non-profits in the Halifax area where some have lost out to developers.

"They're not necessarily wanting to put their name out there and say 'we're not happy about this' because they're likely going to put in another proposal and don't want to develop a negative relationship with … the provincial government or other funders," McCourt said.

Like Thomas in Hammonds Plains, McCourt said it would be helpful to see the province cut red tape and talk to each municipality about whether the lands are appropriate for development.

"It's getting those people at the same table to say, 'What is the ultimate endgame here?'" McCourt said. "If it's more affordable housing, then how can we make that happen so that it's easier for the organizations that are motivated to do it?"

The non-profit chosen back in 2021 to pilot the program is the only one under construction. Dartmouth Housing is creating 18 units in a three-storey building on Circassion Drive off the Forest Hills Parkway in Cole Harbour, on a transit route and close to stores and services. Nine will be at 50 per cent of market rent, with the other nine going for market rate. They hope people can move in next spring.

President Nick Russell said they've gotten more than $4 million from both the Nova Scotia government and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation for the $7-million project.

While the municipality's development process did take just over a year, he said it was a "reasonable amount of time" and didn't put the project at risk.

"It was just speed bumps … but we got through everything and I think we're all better for it," Russell said. "It's really something for all of us to be proud of."

Projects in Antigonish, New Minas, Dartmouth

Three other non-profit projects are making progress:

• The Antigonish Affordable Housing Society hopes to start construction this summer on 17 units on Appleseed Drive with them being available at 70 per cent of market rent.
• Affirmative Ventures is planning 30 units off Karen Drive in Dartmouth. Two public meetings are coming up on June 26 at Cole Harbour Place.
• Valley Roots Housing Association wants to break ground in the fall on 32 units on Highbury Road in New Minas. They will have three levels of affordability ranging from close to market rent to below 80 per cent. 

Russell Sanche, who chairs the Valley Roots board, said their 0.7-hectare site is ideal because they and the Municipality of the County of Kings identified it a few years ago.

"The support from both the county and the province has been really good," Sanche said.

Few details on some projects

Three projects announced last November went to for-profit developers and at the time, there was no information about how many units would be created and what they would cost.

A provincial spokesperson said although proposal submissions "should include drawings and site concept plans, some flexibility is offered," especially for non-profits who don't have the funds to engage consultants in the application stage.

"Most proposals are pre-conceptual in nature and subject to change based on municipal planning requirements and approvals," said the Department of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

• Metro Premier Properties developer Clark Wilkins won land on Sherwood Street in Cole Harbour. He's now in the design phase, and plans to create 198 units through three-storey multi-unit buildings and eight townhomes. 
• ARC Developments won land on Aberdeen Road just outside Bridgewater. They had not filed plans with the Municipality of the District of Lunenburg as of late May, and did not return requests for comment.
• Millwood Developments won land in Middle Sackville off Larrigan Drive. They have not filed plans with HRM, and did not return requests for comment. 

The department said timelines for these projects vary, and updates are required to ensure milestones are being hit. If a project doesn't proceed, they said "legal mechanisms" would ensure the land comes back to the Nova Scotia government.

The province said they have committed to creating 17,500 affordable units in the next five years in Nova Scotia, and the land for housing program "is just one more way we are working on solutions."