Attainable and Affordable Housing Information
Attainable and affordable housing is a vital component for the creation and sustainability of prosperous and complete communities.
It is important that housing meets the needs of all residents and respond to changes in demographics and shifts in demand. Communities are becoming increasingly diverse and the housing supply needs to respond to this diversity as well as maintain its sense of community and character.
Below you will find information regarding the following:
- Affordable Housing Grants and Incentives
- Housing Supports and Services
- Affordable Housing Action Plan and Initiatives
- Attainable Supply Action Plan (ASAP)
- Homeless Shelters and Drop In Services
- Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program Project
Orillia's Housing Future
It's predicted the City of Orillia will experience a population increase to 49,000 by 2051, which means approximately 7,000 new housing units will need to be introduced in order for the Orillia housing market to keep up with this anticipated growth.
Not only will there be a need in the numbers of units to increase but also the variety. Affordable Housing options for those with limited incomes, including students, young families and seniors will be required to accommodate changing needs in the community. Orillia has already taken its first steps with the creation of the Orillia Affordable Housing Action Plan. In 2020, the City of Orillia developed a policy to offer Affordable Housing Incentives for eligible projects. In 2023, the City of Orillia partnered with the County of Simcoe to create a Housing Attainable Supply Action Plan (ASAP) to develop strategies for increasing the supply of attainable housing.
Orillia's average housing price indicates a market with great investment opportunities. In conjunction with the increased investment opportunity. City Staff have created information to help owners and developers responsibly convert single dwellings to multi-unit dwellings in order to create safe dwelling units, as well as, increase their profits and the City's housing options.
The City has streamlined its Site Plan Approval process to decrease the time spent on approvals for developers who are looking to build in Orillia.
The Affordable Housing Committee is the key advocate and supporter of a prosperous and healthy housing future in Orillia.
Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation website has information and programs to assist you.
Simcoe County is the Service Manager on behalf of the City of Orillia who builds and provides affordable housing. The County of Simcoe Housing website has general information about housing, while this the County of Simcoe Social Housing website also has specific information about social housing and programs to assist you.
Summary of City of Orillia Average Market Rent (AMR) 2024
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Bachelor
100% AMR
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1 Bedroom
100% AMR
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2 Bedroom
100% AMR
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3 Bedroom
100% AMR
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| Orillia |
$966 |
$1,171 |
$1,368 |
$1,791 |
Affordable Housing Grants and Incentives
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The available grants and incentives are designed to help make housing more affordable. Learn more about the grants and incentives and whether you are eligible by clicking the links below:
| Incentives |
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The City of Orillia has developed an Affordable Housing Incentives Policy 4.2.1.4. to provide eligible projects with Affordable Housing Incentives. The incentives offered include:
- Donation of City-owned Land (provided the City has available land and the Affordable Housing Reserve has a balance that is sufficient to offset the full land value of the donated land) including a grant from the Affordable Housing Reserve for the Application Fee for disposal of lands and legal fees associated with the transfer.
- Grant in an amount equal to all or part of the Purchase Price of Land to be funded from the Affordable Housing Reserve.
- Grant in the amount equal to all or part of the applicable Building, Planning and Engineering Review Fees to be funded from the Affordable Housing Reserve:
- Planning Application Fees (but not including any additional resubmission or recirculation fees)
- Building Permit Fees
- Engineering Review Fees (i.e. Municipal Control Fee, Service Connection Fee, Stormwater Recovery Fee, etc.)
- Lot Grading Fees (deposit will still be required).
- Grant in the amount equal to all or part of the applicable Cash-in-Lieu of Parking to be funded from the Affordable Housing Reserve.
- Grant in the amount of $10,000 per eligible affordable housing unit to be funded from the Affordable Housing Reserve.
- Reduced Securities to no less than 30% of the total value of the securities required to be posted with the City.
These incentives are available to eligible projects subject to an evaluation process and Council's approval. The eligibility criteria is:
- Affordable housing project is located within the City of Orillia; and
- The affordable housing project shall be situated on lands that are pre-zoned to permit the use(s) contained in the proposed development; and
- Must be a government or not-for-profit organization managing the affordable housing project; and
- Must provide affordable housing for a minimum of 20 years; and
- For rental housing, the affordable housing project must also be approved to receive funds from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and/or the County of Simcoe by way of Federal and/or Provincial and/or County funding; and
- The affordable housing project proponent / financial assistance applicant shall not be involved in litigation or other legal actions against the City of Orillia; and
- For rental housing, the affordable housing project must offer all units at rents which will not exceed 80% of the Average Market Rent for a unit in Orillia based on CMHC's most recent Rental Market Report; or
- For homeownership, the purchase price will result in annual accommodation costs (comprised of mortgage and taxes) of not more than 30% of the gross annual household income of the occupants and the occupants' gross annual household income must not exceed the Median Household Income for Orillia (as determined by the County of Simcoe).
Incentives are only offered if there is available City land to donate and/or if there is sufficient funds available in the City's Affordable Housing Reserve.
If you are interested in applying for financial incentives and you meet eligibility criteria, you can complete the Application for Financial Assistance for Affordable Housing and submit to Janette McGee, Housing Coordinator at jmcgee@orillia.ca. For questions about completing the application, please contact Janette McGee, Housing Coordinator, at 705-418-3575 or jmcgee@orillia.ca.
The process for reviewing and evaluating your application is contained in Affordable Housing Incentives Policy 4.2.1.4.
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Housing and Support Services
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The available housing programs and services are designed to help make housing more affordable for you. Learn more local housing programs and outreach services and whether you are eligible by clicking the links below:
The City of Orillia attempts to make our website documents accessible however, some of these documents may not completely meet the AODA Accessibility requirements. If you require assistance or communication support, please contact the Planning Division at 705-325-2622.
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Affordable Housing Action Plan and Initiatives
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The City of Orillia is working to address the most pressing housing issues. The Housing Action Plan, endorsed by Council in April 2010 and was developed in alignment with the County of Simcoe 10-point Housing Strategy was created to address Council’s top priorities of addressing homelessness and supporting housing diversity.
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Attainable Supply Action Plan (Housing ASAP)
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In 2023, the City of Orillia partnered with the County of Simcoe to develop a Housing Attainable Supply Action Plan (ASAP). N. Barry Lyon Consultants Ltd., based in Toronto, has been retained to prepare the ASAP.
Attainable Housing refers to rental or ownership housing provided by the private market with no government assistance that is adequate in condition and size, reasonably priced and available.
The objective of the ASAP is to identify strategies which can be implemented over the next five years to increase the supply of attainable housing in the City of Orillia and throughout Simcoe County.
In September of 2023, a Housing Needs Assessment was completed which provides data on Orillia with respect to household income and price points for rental and ownership housing. The Housing Needs Assessment identifies affordability gaps and identifies the number of households in Core Housing Need.
To obtain the most current information about this project, visit the County of Simcoe's ASAP website.
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Homeless Shelters and Drop in Services
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The available homeless shelters and drop in services are designed to help people experiencing homelessness. Learn more about local shelter supports and drop in services and programs and whether you are eligible by clicking the links below.
| Lighthouse Shelter |
| The Lighthouse Shelter, an Orillia emergency shelter for men, women and youth including housing, medical clinic, and daily meals. |
| Youth Haven Emergency Housing |
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Youth Haven Emergency Housing is located in Barrie and is for youth 16-24 years old who are fleeing an unsafe home environment, those who have lost their housing and youth who living outdoors.
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| Sharing Place Orillia Food Bank |
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Sharing Place Orillia Food Bank provides food assistance equal to a six-day supply of healthy food, once a month to families and individuals who identify as food insecure.
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| Salvation Army |
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The Salvation Army’s Street Outreach Teams are deployed every Friday evening in the Orillia City Center. Free dinner, snacks and beverages are offered to anyone in the area, as well as heat and cold supplies if required.
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| Greenhaven Shelter for Women |
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Greenhaven Shelter provides a safe and supportive shelter program for women and dependent children experiencing abuse in Orillia and area.
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| City of Orillia Youth Centre |
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Orillia Youth Centre provides the community based drop in space that is safe and supervised.
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| Library Community Support Worker |
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The City of Orillia’s Library Community Support Worker provides free onsite staff support at the Library to help residents navigate social services including housing.
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| Orillia Overnight Emergency Warming Centre |
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The Orillia Overnight Emergency Warming Centre is for people experiencing homelessness during extreme cold weather warnings.
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Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program Project
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The County of Simcoe is working collaboratively with the City of Orillia to construct a temporary residential facility that will be used by the County of Simcoe to operate a Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program (SRRP) in Orillia. This Supportive Rapid Rehousing Program is designed to assist low-risk individuals experiencing situational homelessness to transition into permanent housing within 180 days. This is not an emergency shelter site or managed encampment. Bringing this program to Orillia could create openings for 10-to-20 emergency shelter beds at any one time at the emergency shelter for higher risk individuals, who are those experiencing chronic homelessness.
Read the full news release issued jointly by the County of Simcoe and the City of Orillia on March 4, 2024 regarding this project.
Check out answers to frequently asked questions.
Visit the County of Simcoe's Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program webpage for more information.
Status Update - April 19, 2024
The City of Orillia and the County of Simcoe issued a joint news release today to inform the community that the County of Simcoe has selected the service operator. The County of Simcoe committed to selecting a non-profit organization to operate the SRRP program with a 24-hour staffing model. The County of Simcoe selected the Elizabeth Fry Society Simcoe Muskoka through a Request for Proposal process and during the selection process the County of Simcoe and the Elizabeth Fry Society Simcoe Muskoka decided to prioritize serving youth who are 16-24 years old and experiencing situationally homelessness because of the increased number of young people experiencing homelessness.
For the full details about selection of the service operator for the SRRP project, please read the news release, Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program News Release.
| Previous Status Updates |
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March 28, 2024
The execution of all the necessary steps needed to implement the SRRP project in the expedited timelines has involved collaboration and support from the City of Orillia and the County of Simcoe. The County of Simcoe is committed to selecting a non-profit service provider to operate the SRRP program with a 24-hour staffing model. The County will announce the selection of the service provider soon. For the full details about all the steps that have been taken to implement the SRRP project, please read the Council Information Package distributed to Mayor and Members of Council on March 28, 2024.
March 15, 2024
City and County staff will begin to visit surrounding property owners within the neighbourhood of 175 West Street South beginning Thursday, March 21 to engage property owners, provide education and awareness materials about the SRRP project, and address any concerns. For full details, read the Council Information Package distributed to Mayor and Members of Council on March 15, 2024.
March 8, 2024
On March 5, 2024 staff and consultants from the County of Simcoe met to discuss the Building Permit requirements for the SRRP building and though this meeting it was determined that there were no obstructions at the 175 West Street South property that would prevent the County from submitting a Building Permit by March 15, 2024. Given 175 West Street South was Council’s first choice in terms of location for operating the SRRP program, staff and consultants at the County of Simcoe are moving full-steam ahead to prepare their Building Permit application for the site at 175 West Street South. For more information regarding this update, please see the memo provided in the Council Information Package distributed to Mayor and Members of Council on March 8, 2024.
March 4, 2024
At its meeting on March 4, 2024, Orillia City Council adopted the following motion:
THAT as recommended in Report MC-24-04 dated February 27, 2024 from the Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program Working Group, the following properties be pursued, in order of priority, for the County of Simcoe's Temporary Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program, based on the property that enables the County of Simcoe to apply for a Building Permit by March 15, 2024:
1. 175 West Street South
2. 66 Peter Street South
AND THAT the Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program Working Group be dissolved.
March 1, 2024
On March 4, 2024, Orillia City Council will consider sites for the proposed Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program based on recommendations from the Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program Council Working Group. To review the Council Working Group's full report, and background information, see the link on page 2 of the March 4, 2024 Council agenda. On February 12, 2024, Orillia Council supported the site development for the Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program in partnership with the County of Simcoe and committed to a financial contribution of up to $100,000 for fees related to the project along with a tax exemption for the duration of the program.
Feb. 12, 2024
On Feb. 12, 2024, Orillia City Council considered Report DSE-24-08 related to a proposed Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program partnership including recommended sites to place a temporary facility to facilitate the program. Orillia Council supported the site development for the Supportive Rapid Re-Housing Program partnership with the County of Simcoe and committed to a financial contribution of up to $100,000 for fees related to the project along with a tax exemption for the duration of the program. However, Council did not approve a site for the proposed facility at this time.
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Poverty Reduction Action Plan
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The City of Orillia Poverty Reduction Action Plan is an initiative aimed at addressing the systemic challenges of poverty in the City through collaborative, evidence-based strategies. Click here to learn more about the Poverty Reduction Action Plan.
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The City of Orillia attempts to make our website documents accessible, however some of these documents may not completely meet the AODA Accessibility requirements. If you require assistance or communication support, please contact the Planning Division at 705-325-2622.
