Canada's housing co-ops meet in London to support affordable housing

LONDON, ON, June 9 /CNW Telbec/ - More than 700 people arrive at London's Conference Centre today from housing co-ops across the country for the annual meeting of the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada. Delegates' top priority is addressing Canada's affordable housing crisis.

"Co-op members from across Canada will vote Saturday on a motion calling on all levels of government to develop an accountability framework that links government spending to measurable reductions in core housing need," said CHF Canada's president, Ken Elliott, from Woodstock, New Brunswick. "Our members appreciate their own affordable co-op homes, but they know that far too many people in Canada desperately need affordable housing."

According to CHF Canada's Dunning Report - Dimensions of Core Housing Need in Canada, released late last year, close to four million Canadians live in core housing need. And there are worrisome signs that this number is growing dramatically.

Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Jim Bradley, will speak to delegates at 3:30 p.m. on June 11.

At each annual meeting, CHF Canada's members raise funds for a local group to help the homeless. This year members will be raising funds for My Sister's Place, a safe haven for women who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

This year, Rooftops Canada, CHF Canada's international development arm, marks 25 years of success helping create co-op homes for thousands of families in developing countries. This London meeting will host visitors from the Zimbabwe National Association of Housing Co-operatives to celebrate this anniversary.

CHF Canada is the national voice of the Canadian co-operative housing movement. Its members include nearly 900 non-profit housing co-operatives and other organizations across Canada. More than a quarter of a million Canadians live in housing co-ops, in every province and territory.

For further information: Scott Jackson, Program Manager, National Communications, [phone] (cell), [email protected]