U-Live launched to promote affordable living development in the Greenbelt

Newswire.ca
April 7, 2015

Greenbelt review must accommodate residential development to ease the sky-rocketing costs of family homes
 
The Urban Living In Viable Environments (U-Live) website launched this week to foster discussion on the Greenbelt Plan review and highlight the growing need for affordable family homes in the GTA. Former York Region MPP Peter Shurman, who represented the riding of Thornhill from 2007 until 2014, is driving the discussion. 
 
As population in the region increases, demand for housing will continue to grow. At the same time, existing Greenbelt restrictions are effectively cutting off the source of supply of homes for families. This dynamic creates conditions that make the term 'affordable living' nearly obsolete, contributes to greenhouse emissions and reduces the quality of life for families as work commutes only get longer. Provincial and municipal leaders must address these unsustainable conditions.

U-Live's message is clear:  
•Extending the space reserved for conservation activities, agriculture, working ecosystems and recreation makes sense.
•Municipalities and the province have a responsibility to eliminate the conditions that are artificially inflating real estate prices in the GTA and surrounding areas and creating an imbalance between supply and demand.
•Reforming the Greenbelt Plan with the goal to maintain environmental protections while allowing residential development to meet the growing demand for housing is essential.

Quick Facts
•Population in the Greater Golden Horseshoe is expected to reach 13 million by 2041.
•It takes 6.5 times the average income to buy a house in the GTA, up from 4.8 times in 2006.
•Economic reports suggest that the GTA is beginning to outpace New York in terms of income required to own a home.

Quotes
"The Greenbelt Plan needs a tune up. There is a real shortage of affordable homes for families in the GTA and surrounding regions. The province must face this challenge and address the lack of supply by taking a realistic view of the housing situation and updating the Greenbelt Plan to accommodate affordable residential development for families, while protecting important green spaces." - Peter Shurman
 
SOURCE The Urban Living In Viable Environments (U-Live)
For further information: please visit www.u-live.ca or contact Peter Shurman at 416-484-4484 peter@petershurman.com .