Haliburton County council has supported Habitat for Humanity Peterborough and Kawartha Region’s request to apply for $15.5 million in provincial funding through Infrastructure Ontario, with the money to be used to bring 57 new affordable housing units to Haliburton village.
Approved at last Wednesday’s (June 24) County meeting, the loan will support construction of a 35-unit build on Peninsula Road and the repurposing of the Haliburton Heights timeshare on Wigamog Road, creating 22 condos.
The Peninsula Road project will feature all one and two-bedroom apartments, with the Haliburton Heights timeshare comprised of six studios, six one-bedroom units and 10 two-bed units.
Habitat’s CEO, Susan Zambonin, confirmed most of the units would be sold via the non-profit’s homeownership program. Fifteen of the Peninsula Road apartments will be sold to Places for People, a partner in the project, which intends to offer them for below-market rent.
Zambonin told County council last week that securing a low-interest loan through Infrastructure Ontario would save Habitat big money.
“If we were to borrow this money from a bank, we would spend more than $1 million on interest fees. On top of that, we’d also have to come up with more than $4.5 million of our own money before we can start drawing down on a construction loan,” Zambonin said. “That’s $4.5 million we could be spending on other projects, helping other families.”
Treasurer Andrea Robinson said the County had sufficient borrowing capacity under both the Municipal Act’s annual repayment limit (ARL) and the County’s debt policy to accommodate the request.
Through the Municipal Act, the province allows municipalities to borrow money up to 25 per cent of its ‘own source’ revenues – this includes property taxes, user fees and investment income. The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing calculates ARLs annually, with the County’s 2026 limit pegged at just over $5.1 million.
After taking into account the Habitat loan, Robinson said the County would still have approximately $1.25 million of wiggle room on its ARL.
The treasurer said the agreement stipulates the loan should be repaid in a maximum of three years. Zambonin said the plan would be to start selling units as soon as she has approval to build, committing to repay the full $15.5 million within 120 days of completion of the Peninsula Road project.
Coun. Liz Danielsen was concerned about the risk the County would be taking on. Robinson confirmed the County would be responsible for repaying the loan to the province should Habitat not be able to meet its obligations. The non-profit has committed to paying all interest payments for the duration of the loan.
County CAO Gary Dyke said, given how extensive the Infrastructure Ontario application process is, he feels the County would be sufficiently protected.
“Based on our review and the partnership we’re looking at doing, we feel the risk is well-mitigated,” Dyke said.
Zambonin said she’s hoping to tap into federal grants to help pay for construction. She said, if Habitat didn’t raise enough money to pay the loan back on time, the non-profit has a $1 million development line of credit and $13 million in mortgage receivables it can use as collateral to secure an additional bank loan, if necessary, to make the County whole.
Coun. Cec Ryall asked how many of the 57 units would go to County residents. Zambonin said she hoped all of them.
“As soon as we have construction financing secured, we will start advertising in Haliburton County that we’re looking for homeowners. Our goal is all 57 units will be filled by people who live or work in Haliburton County,” she said.
