County of Simcoe coffers have been topped up with more than $81,000 in funding through the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit (COHB) to help individuals and families secure affordable housing.
That funding, announced Tuesday by the provincial government, is part of the $75.5 million in top-up funding announced in December 2024 to free up shelter space and help people in encampments move quickly from crisis into safer accommodation, according to government officials.
It also brings the total COHB funding for the county to more than $1.1 million in 2024-25.
COHB provides funding directly to households that are on, or eligible to be on, a social housing wait list and to households in financial need living in community housing. It also helps individuals and families who may be at risk of homelessness to secure and stay in a rental home that meets their needs.
The funding is expected to help the County of Simcoe address the complex issue of encampments and address the specific needs of the people residing within them.
“When the county created its 10-point homelessness prevention plan (HPP), we knew it had to be a data-informed plan that was ambitious while respecting taxpayers’ dollars," said Simcoe County Warden Basil Clarke. "We know that homelessness remains an ongoing challenge across the region and in communities across Ontario, but it is a challenge that, through this announcement and ongoing support provided by the province, is one that can be mitigated."
Clarke also said the county intends to use additional resources to “get people housed quickly and create more space in the system.”
Mina Fayez-Bahgat, the county’s general manager of social and community services, welcomed the new funding.
“We are incredibly grateful for the Ontario government’s increased funding commitments through the COHB program that will help us increase our efforts to move residents who have been living ‘rough’ in encampments, or staying in shelters to more stable housing outcomes," he said. "These types of investments help us to find new, innovative solutions while providing ongoing support and services to those who need us the most."