January 2023 – January 2025

Housing & Community Advocacy

Championing affordable housing & housing affordability

Affordable homes. Sensible growth. Stronger communities.

Make Housing Affordable leadership, city hall delegations, and ongoing pro-housing advocacy in Ottawa.

Provincial housing target: 151,000; New homes in Ottawa by 2032
Housing starts: 37,000; New units toward the target
City-wide upzoning: 4×3; Units and storeys permitted
Affordable units: 400+; Added since 2022

Make Housing Affordable is a grassroots pro-housing advocacy group in Ottawa, founded in 2021 to fight back against the policies and processes that keep housing scarce and expensive.

I joined the board in January 2023, after meeting the group during my 2022 mayoral campaign, and served as President & Chair through January 2025.

In addition to MHA, I am a member of Strong Towns Ottawa, a community of advocates pushing for a more financially resilient and livable Ottawa.

With Strong Towns, I've canvassed in support of housing affordability, public transit, and sustainable city building. I am also an eager participant in the Ottawa Urbanism Book Club as often as my schedule allows.

The through-line from my mayoral run to MHA and Strong Towns to the Carleton campaign is the same: Ottawa and Ontario need more homes, smarter zoning, and citizens willing to show up consistently for evidence-based policy, housing or otherwise.

Why Make Housing Affordable exists

Housing is one of the defining issues of our generation, and too many politicians at every level have made it worse through inaction, exclusionary zoning, funding cuts, demand subsidies, and consultation processes that reward obstruction.

Make Housing Affordable exists to change that. The organization coordinates pro-housing delegations to Ottawa's Planning and Housing Committee, publishes policy proposals, rates candidates on housing platforms, and builds community buy-in for the homes Ottawa needs.

Traditionally, the people passionate enough to delegate to a committee show up to block projects. MHA flips that script, ensuring councillors and staff hear positive feedback for good projects and that supportive voices are organized, informed, and persistent.

What the organization does

MHA is a volunteer-based advocacy organization. A passionate group of Ottawans who care deeply about their community and dream of an affordable life for themselves and their families, working together to change how Ottawa plans, zones, and builds housing.

Committee delegations

Regular coordinated delegations to Ottawa's Planning and Housing Committee, offering pro-housing testimony that counters the default pattern of project opposition.

Candidate accountability

During the 2022 municipal election, MHA met with mayoral and council candidates, recorded their housing positions, and published stoplight ratings so voters could see who was serious about building homes.

Policy documents

The Six Big Moves and Housing Action Plan laid out concrete steps for Ottawa to take action on housing affordability.

Community events

Group discussions with councillors, advocacy events partnered with organizations like the Alliance to End Homelessness, and ongoing outreach to build a broader pro-housing coalition.

Multi-level advocacy

Meetings with municipal, provincial, and federal representatives to push for zoning reform, better housing targets, and funding tools that match the scale of the crisis.

Zoning by-law review

Throughout 2024, MHA focused on Ottawa's zoning by-law review, submitting feedback to the city, advocating for bold steps to legalize missing-middle housing, and pushing for an end to the R1 single-family exclusivity zone that covers nearly half the city.

Ottawa's progress

Over the last term of council, thanks in part to our advocacy, the city has:

Seen average home prices decline from the 2022 peak
Permitted 4 units and 3 storeys throughout nearly all of the city
Received a target of 151,000 homes from the provincial government
Eliminated parking minimums inside the urban boundary
Increased mixed-use zoning to a much larger number of streets
Added over 400 affordable housing units

But not everything has been good. Since 2022, the city has also:

Seen average rents continue to climb
Increased taxes on new homes ("development charges") by 76–91% — as much as $28,000 more
Missed its annual progress toward its housing target every single year
Begun construction for just over 37,000 units: about 75% of the target for 2022–2026
Grown its wait list for affordable housing from 12,000 to over 15,000 people