'Absolutely a game changer': Habitat for Humanity excited about new housing in Leamington

Excitement is growing in Leamington after municipal council accepted a proposal for an attainable housing development on the former Leamington District Secondary School (LDSS) property at 125 Talbot St. W.

Last week, councillors voted unanimously in favour of the proposal submitted by Amico Properties Inc. that includes two six-storey apartment buildings, with 95 and 105 units, respectively, along with 105 townhome units.

“This is an amazing opportunity,” exclaimed Habitat for Humanity Windsor-Essex CEO, Fiona Coughlin.

Coughlin said a minimum of 18 townhomes will be made available for Habitat for Humanity Windsor-Essex to purchase at cost after a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Amico also signed.

Coughlin said Habitat will then provide those dwellings to families the organization serves through its geared-to-income mortgage model.

“This development is going to be huge,” Coughlin said. “It increases our capacity. We're going to be able to have 18 homes coming to Leamington. They will be built by Amico. There may be components of the finishing that our volunteers will be involved in on the houses. So it will still keep our volunteer involvement component, but it allows us to keep building traditionally at the same time as this developments happening.”

Coughlin told CTV News Windsor that the local Habitat typically builds five homes a year. She also noted this development will still be considered a community build.

“It's absolutely a game changer,” Coughlin explained. “A lot of people think that Habitat gives away free homes, which we don't. It's always a partnership with the homeowners who put in their time and help to either build or help at the Restore, and then they pay a mortgage that is never more than 30 per cent of their income and that's what makes Habitat’s program unique.”

Coughlin added, “Leamington’s been a fun neighbourhood to build with and a fun community and they really are innovators. They're really open to coming up with new solutions to address the housing crisis.”

While plans still need to be finalized and receive proper approvals, officials with Amico Properties said they couldn’t be happier to do such meaningful work in the Leamington community.

“It's a really wonderful opportunity all the way around,” said Cindy Prince, Amico’s vice president of development.

“They're the experts in how to provide affordable and attainable housing. We're looking forward to learning from them,” Prince added. “And to have a strong partner who's going to help us along the way, make sure we do it right and hopefully we'll learn enough through this process that we can take this opportunity to other communities.”

Prince suggested the total cost of the project could be more than $100 million, with a goal of breaking ground by next June, with people living in the new homes by 2026.

The proposal indicates that 30 per cent of the dwellings will be attainable units.

The project is planned to be built out in two phases: the first is the construction of one apartment building and approximately 32 of the townhomes as well as the daycare, while the second is the balance of the development, including the majority of the attainable dwelling units.

If the demand is there, it is believed that this project can be built out in three years. However, it is possible that the project may extend to five years.

In the meantime, Amico and the municipality will enter into an agreement of purchase and sale, which is conditional upon Amico satisfying itself as to the soil and environmental condition of the subject lands and entering into a development agreement with the municipality.

Following the execution of the agreement of purchase and sale, Amico and the municipality will begin working through the development approval process as well as the application for a minor variance and site plans as required.

All existing buildings located on the property would be demolished within 120 days from the execution of the development agreement.

Council and the public will have the opportunity to review and comment on the proposed development throughout the process.