Habitat for Humanity Windsor-Essex is hoping to partner with developers who are putting together proposals to build on municipal land that the city of Windsor is opening up for housing.
The City of Windsor has launched an Expression of Interest process for several lands as part of the Housing Solutions Made for Windsor strategy.
The EOI invites developers and proponents to submit comprehensive proposals for sustainable, inclusive, and community-oriented housing development.
The housing strategy that was first announced in March 2024 is focused on increasing the supply of housing and meeting aggressive housing targets by identifying and making shovel-ready various municipal lands with high potential for residential development.
Habitat for Humanity wants developers across the region to embrace densification, affordable ownership options in their projects to address the housing crisis, and to work with the group to showcase their commitment to building a better community for generations to come.
Fiona Coughlin, Executive Director and CEO for Habitat for Humanity Windsor-Essex, says they would be an excellent partner for any of the proposals.
"I know that the city has mentioned that they would like to see an affordable component in the proposals that come in," she says. "We'd love to talk with developers that are interested in the properties and come up with a partnership that works.
"Developers who are considering condo developments, we would be interested in having a couple of units as habitat units as part of the development. Especially if they're looking at those kinds of units that do meet a need in the community that has often been overlooked for seniors and individuals in need," she says.
Coughlin says they currently have a partnership with Amico Group on a housing project in Leamington and hope they can do the same in Windsor.
"We talked together, and we came up with a memo of understanding between the two of us," she says. "They are building 300 homes on the old high school property, the Leamington District Secondary School property, and some of those homes will be habitat homes."
The city's Housing Solutions Made for Windsor strategy includes six municipal properties already identified as possessing significant and immediate potential for development.
The properties include the former Windsor Arena at 572 McDougall Street, the former Grace Hospital Site at 339 Crawford Avenue, the former Lowe Secondary School site, the Caron Avenue Parking Lot, the Pelissier Street Parking Lot, and the Roseland Golf Club Parking Lot.