Committee of Council established to advance priorities addressing housing and homelessness crisis

April 24, 2025

Newmarket – York Regional Council approved establishing a Housing and Homelessness Committee to guide development of the next 10-year Housing and Homelessness Plan, including increasing supply of emergency, transitional, affordable and community housing.

“As demand continues to outpace supply and more residents struggle to find and keep housing, addressing York Region’s housing and homelessness challenges remains a priority for Council,” said York Region Chairman and CEO Eric Jolliffe. “This Special Committee of Council will have the opportunity to explore and better understand the complexities and identify solutions to improve the current housing and homelessness crisis occurring across our municipalities.”

Members of the Housing and Homelessness Committee are comprised of York Regional Council members and include:

Eric Jolliffe, York Region Chairman and CEO
Frank Scarpitti, City of Markham Mayor
Steven Del Duca, City of Vaughan Mayor
David West, City of Richmond Hill Mayor
John Taylor, Town of Newmarket Mayor
Tom Mrakas, Town of Aurora Mayor
Iain Lovatt, Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville Mayor
Margaret Quirk, Town of Georgina Mayor
Virginia Hackson, Town of East Gwillimbury Mayor
Steve Pellegrini, Township of King Mayor

A Chair and Vice-Chair will be selected at the first Housing and Homelessness Committee meeting, scheduled for Thursday, May 15, 2025, immediately following Housing York Inc. Board of Directors meeting.

This Committee will help prioritize and recommend solutions with a focus on the Region’s Service Manager responsibilities in the housing and homelessness system to guide development for the next 10-year Housing and Homelessness Plan. This includes accelerating new supply of emergency, transitional, community and affordable housing and support coordination and collaboration at the local municipal level.

Additional responsibilities of the committee include:

Supporting coordination with key partners, such as local municipalities, non-profit and private sectors, to advance shared housing and homelessness priorities
Advocating for investment from all levels of government and supporting the Region in securing relevant funding opportunities that advance the Region’s housing goals
Monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of housing strategies, policies and programs to ensure they advance the Region’s goals and adapt to changing local needs

Committee recommendations to advance the Region’s housing and homelessness priorities will be reported to York Regional Council for approval.

For more information on housing supports and plans, visit york.ca/housing

The Regional Municipality of York consists of nine local cities and towns and provides a variety of programs and services to more than 1.25 million residents and 57,000 businesses with more than 629,000 employees. More information about the Region’s key service areas is available at york.ca/regionalservices

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Media Contact:

Tamara Ostrowski, Corporate Communications,
The Regional Municipality of York
Phone: 905-251-6412
Email: @email