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Town of Gravenhurst

Housing Needs Assessment
2024

This project intersects the following areas:

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In 2024, SHS was retained by the Town of Gravenhurst to deliver a Housing Needs Assessment for the municipality.

Objective

The Town of Gravenhurst’s Strategic Plan 2023-2027 adopted the goal of encouraging the development of diverse housing options to meet community needs. This Housing Needs Assessment was completed to fulfil one of the initiatives planned under this priority and to help define the Town’s role in housing provision.

Activities

Project work to inform this Housing Needs Assessment included:

  • Demographic, market, and municipal data analysis
  • Design, delivery, and analysis of a resident survey to provide insights into the unique needs of people in Gravenhurst
  • Engagement with relevant parties through focus groups to understand housing challenges, needs, and promising potential solutions and partnership opportunities

The SHS team summarized findings into a series of demographic, housing market, and housing affordability profiles. We used these profiles to inform four key housing gaps identified within Gravenhurst’s housing system. These gaps were then used to pinpoint five priority areas of action for the Town to contemplate, keeping in mind the Town’s unique role in relation to the District of Muskoka (the municipal service manager), higher levels of government, and other community partners.

We crafted a series of promising practices and case studies to better inform the next steps and future opportunities for impact in Gravenhurst. The Housing Needs Assessment will serve as the foundation for developing housing-related actions for the Town in the coming years.

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Relevant Links

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77 Bloor Street West, Suite 600
Toronto ON
M5S 1M2

77 Bloor Street West, Suite 600
Toronto ON
M5S 1M2

905 763 7555

At SHS we acknowledge the lands we are on are the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat peoples and are now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. We also acknowledge that the location of our office in Toronto is covered by Treaty 13. In our work, we strive to continually reflect on our relationship to the land we are currently inhabiting and how our role as actors in the housing system can support the reconciliation process.