Two of Quebec’s largest cities unite to draw attention to looming crisis
Laval mayor Stéphane Boyer and Longueuilmayor Catherine Fournier offered a glimpse last Monday of what will be on the agenda during the 2022 Housing Summit, which is taking place on Aug. 26 at the Laval Sheraton.
Municipal housing
As one of several pledges the two mayors made prior to municipal elections last November, the Housing Summit will be drawing together a variety of players involved in municipal housing issues in the Montreal region and across the province.
Nearly 300 individuals and organizations have signed up for the event, including the mayors of Quebec’s largest cities (Montreal, Quebec City, etc.), members of municipal councils, leaders from government, community groups, private organizations and academic institutions, as well as representatives from the Quebec and Canadian governments.
Issues for discussion
Five panels will be considering some of the most important issues, to encourage discussions and exchanges throughout the day. Here are some of the issues they will be discussing:
- The responsibilities and needs of municipalities
- The current state of the situation as regards housing in Quebec
- Property tax questions
- Legal and regulatory questions
- Financial issues
Among the invited presenters will be the Union des municipalités du Québec (UMQ), the Fédération québécoise des municipalités (FQM), and the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal (CMM), but also the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC), the Vivre en ville organization,the Centre de transformation du logement communautaire (CTCC) and the Institut dedéveloppement urbain (IDU).
“The issues surrounding housing affect Quebecers from all regions,” Mayor Boyer said in a statement issued last Monday.
Seeking meaningful solutions
“The volatile rise in the cost of rents, the low vacancy rates, renovictions and the overheated housing market are just some examples of the challenges we are up against. Faced with this reality, we have developed a program that looms large so that we end up covering everything in our search for solutions.
“At the conclusion of the summit, the participants will not only have discussed meaningful solutions, but they will also have united behind several of the proposed solutions.” Additional information on the Housing Summit can be found online at www.sommethabitation.ca.
