Evaristo Ramos – Guelph Mayoral Candidate

Transparency in local government isn’t just a buzzword—it means sharing the real mechanics, financial models, and policy trade-offs behind campaign proposals.

Recently, a Guelph resident reached out with a detailed inquiry regarding our plan to build 150 permanent supportive housing units with mental health and addiction supports. They asked:

“Hi Evaristo, I’ve been reading your plan for 150 permanent supportive-housing units with mental-health and addiction supports, and I’m trying to understand how the financing would work.

You’ve said the plan can be implemented without adding the cost to Guelph property taxpayers.

Could you explain what portion of the capital and ongoing operating costs you expect the City of Guelph to pay, and what would happen if the provincial or federal funding you’re counting on doesn’t materialize?

Would you still proceed using municipal tax dollars, reduce the scope of the plan, or wait until outside funding was secured?

I’m genuinely trying to compare the mayoral candidates based on what their proposals would actually cost local taxpayers. Thank you.”

This is exactly the type of scrutiny candidate proposals should receive. Below is the full breakdown of how our financing structure works, how the Municipal Development Corporation (MDC) model functions as the engine of this initiative, and how we protect municipal property taxpayers at every stage.

1. Capital vs. Operating Funding: Clear Jurisdictional Boundaries

To understand how this plan operates without increasing property taxes, we must distinguish between Capital Costs (building and acquiring physical housing) and Ongoing Operating Costs (daily operations, maintenance, and healthcare supports).

Capital Costs (Building & Physical Infrastructure)

Direct municipal property tax dollars will not be used to fund capital construction. Instead, the City’s contribution relies on leveraging non-monetary municipal assets:

• City-Owned Surplus Land: Providing municipal land via long-term (e.g., 99-year) nominal leases. This keeps the land in public hands forever while taking land acquisition costs often 20% to 30% of total project costs entirely off the balance sheet.
• Planning & Fee Reductions: Accelerating planning approvals, streamlining zoning, and waiving Development Charges (DCs) and municipal permit fees for non-profit and supportive housing providers.
• Federal & Provincial Capital Grants: Securing capital dollars from dedicated infrastructure streams, including the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF), and the Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) / provincial housing capital funds.
• Social Finance & Local Philanthropy: Partnering with community finance models, impact investment funds, and non-profit co-developers to raise secondary capital without tapping municipal revenues.

Operating Costs (Healthcare, Clinical Supports & Building Operations)

• Healthcare & Clinical Supports: Under Ontario’s provincial framework, mental health clinical services, addiction counseling, and wrap-around medical supports fall strictly under provincial healthcare jurisdiction (Ministry of Health / Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services). Municipal property taxes are neither designed nor legally intended to fund healthcare delivery.
• Property Management & Rent Subsidies: Building operations and deeply affordable rents (geared-to-income) are sustained through provincial housing allowances, social service allocations managed by the County of Wellington (our Consolidated Municipal Service Manager), and provincial operational grants such as the Homelessness Prevention Program (HPP).

2. The Engine: The Municipal Development Corporation (MDC) Framework

The key policy tool that enables this financing model is a Municipal Development Corporation (MDC).

Rather than relying on traditional municipal department delivery or offloading public land to private developers, an MDC acts as an arms-length municipal entity designed to build and preserve community assets.

Through the MDC framework, our 150-unit supportive housing initiative delivers a hybrid housing model:

1. 90 Purpose-Built Units: Constructing deeply affordable, permanent supportive housing units on repurposed municipal land.
2. 60 Scattered-Site Rentals: Master-leasing and integrating individual units across existing residential housing stock to provide immediate availability and geographical integration across the city.

The MDC serves as the legal entity capable of issuing community bonds, attracting social finance investments, and partnering directly with non-profit housing entities—giving Guelph agile development capabilities while preserving public ownership.

3. Protecting Local Taxpayers: What Happens If Outside Funding Delays?

The resident asked what happens if federal or provincial dollars stall: Do we use municipal tax dollars, reduce scope, or wait?

Our commitment is absolute: We will not shift these costs onto the City of Guelph property tax base, nor will we issue unbacked municipal debt.

Property taxes in Guelph are already under severe pressure, and using local property tax hikes to backfill core provincial healthcare and housing mandates is fiscally irresponsible.

If targeted provincial or federal funding delays occur, we follow a three-part contingency strategy:

1. Modular Phase Execution (Scope Adjustment): We will not build all 150 units at once on spec. Implementation will proceed in modular phases (e.g., executing an initial tranche of 30–40 units as specific grant dollars are locked in).
2. Deploying Social Finance Tools: We will leverage MDC community impact bonds, non-profit equity partnerships, and local philanthropy to bridge smaller capital gaps and maintain progress on active phases while awaiting senior government funding calls.
3. Maintaining Shovel-Ready Priority: By having land assembly, site planning, and MDC framework preparations pre-completed, Guelph remains at the top of the queue whenever federal or provincial housing rounds open.

Summary: A Responsible Fiscal Path Forward

Comparing mayoral platforms requires looking closely at what proposals will actually cost local property taxpayers.

Our plan tackles Guelph’s housing and homelessness crisis not by raising taxes or waiting passively for senior levels of government, but by taking active control of municipal assets through a Municipal Development Corporation. By leveraging City land, utilizing social finance, and holding the province accountable for healthcare delivery, we can build the supportive housing our community urgently needs while protecting local homeowners and businesses.