Submitted by Brian McHattie
On January 14, 2023, the Men’s Breakfast group was pleased to host Karla Trudgen and Noreen Steinacher from the Meeting Place, our Tobermory community hub. Karla explained the one- year pilot project designed to provide housing security by incentivizing property owners to become long-term landlords. The County of Bruce provided funding to retrofit and renovate existing buildings to serve as long-term rental accommodations.
Following a call for proposals, an over-whelming 20 applications were received indicating that the Meeting Place had put their finger on the right approach. An experienced Advisory Committee used criteria such as timelines, property management considerations, and occupancy potential, to choose four rental units with the potential to house families, or up to 11 individuals. Each landlord received $25,000, in exchange committing to five years of continual occupancy. The enthusiastic response provides direction for an upcoming Phase II of the project.
Karla emphasized that some Northern Bruce folk have tourist season staff housing but need to find other options in the off-season. The greatest need seems to be families (many with young children) who make a decent income but cannot afford a house in the current market.
Men’s Breakfast members were happy with the recent County planning policy changes to support secondary housing units and the reduction in minimum dwelling size (to 750 square feet, still not in the much desired ‘tiny house’ range).
The next Men’s Breakfast is Saturday February 11, 2023 at the Tobermory Community Centre. Our speaker is Jack Burt, Northern Bruce Fire Chief to talk about the Fire Smart program as we adapt to a greater climate change-induced forest fire risk. If you are planning to attend the Breakfast, please let Martin know at hogarth@auracom.com. Breakfast is at 9, tasty Tobermory Coffee Company beverage ready at 8 a.m.
