ARDN Guide to Developing Affordable Housing

The step-by-step guide highlights best practices in planning, developing, and operating affordable rental housing. These best practices were based upon the experiences of the Alberta Rural Development Network (ARDN) in their affordable housing projects. The guide also used insights from various partners and collaborators. Funding from the NHS Demonstrations Initiative will be used to conduct virtual workshops. These workshops will provide insight into what has worked for communities and what hasn’t. The objective is to improve future versions of the guide.

• The Step-by-Step Guide and virtual workshops will help communities/municipalities/individuals to support the development of affordable housing
• The goal is to provide a one-stop resource. This lowers costs and streamlines the process because consultants do not have to be hired. This is especially important for remote communities who do not have sufficient access to resources such as funding or research.

Project scope and expected outcomes

Helping communities create more affordable housing

It’s clear there’s an urgent need for more affordable housing in Canada. And in rural and remote communities, the need is even more acute. But how should rural communities go about creating new affordable housing? Sometimes, knowing where to start can be one of the most challenging parts of the process.

The ARDN wants to change that. They’ve developed a Step-by-Step Guide to Developing Affordable Housing. With their partners, they’re conducting an National Housing Strategy Demonstrations Initiative project to share the Guide with communities across Canada.

A pan-Canadian focus on creating more affordable housing

This demonstration project is effectively a series of virtual workshops that will be made available to communities across Canada. ARDN will present the Step-by-Step Guide, but in a way that’s tailored to the needs of each community. The objective is to hold seven workshops to help up to 35 rural communities.

Helping communities get the most out of the workshops

Before the workshops, ARDN will gather information from the municipalities, affordable housing providers, community members and other stakeholders who plan to attend. This will help ARDN understand the communities’ affordable housing needs and what they’re trying to achieve from attending the workshop.

ARDN will also provide information so that communities know what to expect from the workshops. This will help participants get the most from the time they spend with the workshop specialists.

Along with pre-workshop research, ARDN will carry out extensive planning to ensure the workshops are a success. This will include:

• A marketing strategy developed in collaboration with the Alberta Network of Public Housing Agencies (ANPHA). This will help raise awareness of the workshops among target audiences.
• A distribution of the marketing material to other provincial and national public and affordable housing agencies through appropriate channels
• A tailoring of workshop content and presentations to each specific location

Sharing knowledge to help increase affordable housing supply

This Demonstrations project will result in a number of knowledge transfer activities: 

• The physical Step-by-Step Guide to Developing Affordable Housing will give communities the information they need to begin an affordable housing project. Communities will learn how to produce needs and demand assessments, conduct community consultations, develop business cases, etc. After the workshop, they can use what they’ve developed to engage potential funding bodies.
• During the workshops, participants work through the worksheets with an ARDN specialist. The specialist will be able to answer any questions they might have about the Step-by-Step Guide.
• Information on what is happening in other communities is a valuable resource. Through networking, participants in each community will be able to learn from other communities that have also attended the workshop.

ARDN and its partners have recognized that it’s not enough to produce a detailed guide on creating affordable housing. They’re following up the launch of their guide with on-the-ground training to help communities apply the recommended steps.

Through this Demonstrations project, ARDN hopes to help move the needle on housing affordability.