OLT gives organization okay to move ahead

Heather Wright/The Independent

Up to half of Sarnia’s chronically homeless people could find a place to live and get support by 2028.

That after the Ontario Land Tribunal cleared the way for Indwell to begin building a 35-unit supportive housing development on George Street in Sarnia.

In February, Sarnia’s committee of adjustment refused Indwell’s application for the five-storey building the lot provided by the County of Lambton.

The Sarnia committee made the decision despite a recommendation from city staff to approve the application. A report says the committee deems the application an “over development” of the vacant lot.  It went on to say that the application is for “supportive,” not affordable housing and a zoning by-law amendment should be considered.

Indwell appealed the decision to the OLT; Tuesday, the planning appeal board agreed the housing could move forward. OLT Member Eric Crowe wrote the OLT “finds the proposed development facilitates appropriate intensification…supports affordable housing, makes efficient use of existing municipal services, transit and active transportation infrastructure, provides appropriate built form and transition to surrounding uses, and maintains an appropriate supply of on-site parking.”

Melissa Fitzpatrick, general manager of social services for Lambton County, says Indwell is moving ahead. The group will need “site plan approval from the city, which generally takes a few months, and then once that approval is in place, it’s proceeding to construction, which hopefully is in the spring.”

Fitzpatrick says the ruling is very good news particularly for the 60 per cent of people living on the streets who are chronically homeless.

“Those folks will require a more intensive level of support to remain successfully housed. We hope to achieve that through supportive housing,” she says.

“Inwell is a very well-respected supportive housing provider across Ontario, and as a municipality, we’re quite lucky to have them on board as a partner…This is the first project, and hopefully more to come because we know our housing needs assessment, our housing units’ plan identify the need for 150 to 250 supportive housing units.”

Fitzpatrick says construction is expected to take a year. “So by spring of 2028, the building would be ready for occupancy.”