Community groups are calling on the Legault government to lift Quebec out of its current housing crisis.
During a press conference on Tuesday, advocates made a plea to the government to increase funding for social housing projects.
“The necessity for people to have good housing is important,” said Éric Cimon, social housing advocate with the Association des groupes de ressources techniques du Québec “It’s a human need that people should understand.”
According to advocates, of the 14,000 units promised by the CAQ government back in 2018, only one third of them have been completed. And the need for more, they say, is massive.
In addition, with rising inflation and high construction costs, they say the province needs to invest more in AccèsLogis Québec, which subsidizes affordable housing.
“We are in a housing crisis and we don’t understand why this money to help these housing units to be built isn’t coming,” said Claire Garnier of Fédération des OSBL d’habitation de Montréal (FOHM).
Advocates say there are several social housing projects that are stalled, waiting to see the light of day because of lack of financing by the province, such as one in the Rosemont district that Global News reported on last September.
A project is slated to have 78 units, with 68 for families, but they are still waiting for provincial funding to complete the building.
Quebec Opposition parties are laying the blame squarely on the premier.
“He is responsible for the actual situation,” said Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, Quebec Solidaire co-spokesperson. “He has denied the existence of the housing crisis for the majority of his last term. He is responsible for the housing crisis right now.”
Quebec’s housing minister said the government is working to catch up, blaming previous governments for 15 years of inaction.
“We have invested nearly $1 billion ($977M) in AccèsLogis, which has enabled us to ensure that two thirds of this backlog is currently being delivered or under construction,” wrote a spokesperson in an email to Global News.
“While waiting for the next budget, we are analyzing each project that is currently backlogged with AccèsLogis, to help get it off the ground.”