Work has begun on an affordable housing project next to the Minden Legion.
Kawartha Lakes Haliburton Housing Corporation (KLHHC) director of human services, Cheryl Faber, said on Aug. 26 that KLHHC has contracted Derigay Developments Limited and clearing of the site for the build has commenced.
She said they hope the project is complete for the fall of 2026, with occupancy in the fourth quarter of next year.
The complex will comprise 35 housing units.
“As the director, human services and (interim) chief executive officer for KLH Housing Corporation, I am happy to see that this project is underway and for it to come to fruition in 2026. It is a great achievement for the community,” Faber said.
It was announced in early 2025 that KLHHC was getting $2.4 million in provincial funding to put towards the housing development on Hwy. 35, just south of the legion.
Minden Hills mayor Bob Carter said this week he was unable to comment. However, last January he said the funding was “very, very welcome. That $2.4 million has me very excited that we will actually be breaking ground on this project this year.”
It was back in September, 2020 that a public-private partnership was announced between long-time cottager, Bill Switzer, who donated the land, and the corporation. The 35 units are planned for the west side of Hwy. 35 at County Road 21, between Rotary Park and the Minden Legion, overlooking the Gull River. At the time, then corporation CEO Hope Lee, now retired, said the townhouses – valued at $6.8 million in 2020 – would provide units towards affordable housing targets.
Switzer first approached Carter about doing something with the land in 2018. Some of the delay stemmed from the Ministry of Transportation not signing off on the site.
Faber said that to apply for community housing, as administered by the consolidated municipal service manager for housing services in Haliburton County and the City of Kawartha Lakes, applications and more information on eligibility and the standardized process can be found at www.kawarthalakes.ca/en/living-here/community-housing. aspx
