For years now one of the most appealing aspects of Yorkton as a community to settle roots in had been the idea of reasonably priced, if not simply cheap housing, when compared to Saskatchewan's larger cities, and with Alberta where many looked to find jobs.
However, in the past couple of years that advantage has very quickly evaporated as housing prices have taken what are nothing short of massive jumps in value.
For some that has been excellent news. Most people can tell a story of someone they know having bought a home five, six, seven years ago, paying $40, or $50,000 and with limited renovations find themselves in a home they could roll for $120,000-plus today.
It doesn't take a whiz at investing to see the way the investment is paying off.
However, the question Yorkton now faces as a community is where a growing population are going to live moving forward.
When Yorkton Council brought interested citizens together in the fall of 2010, to help fashion a vision for the City moving forward housing was certainly on the list. The idea of affordable housing was discussed at some length, although defining what makes a home affordable was a more difficult concept to grasp.
In late 2010, a condominium developer appeared before Council and was proud to advise Council he would likely be bringing the units on the market at just around $200,000, which he termed affordable.
Doing the math on down payment, monthly payments, interest, taxes and associated costs and the idea of a $200,000 home being affordable evaporates rather quickly for those making minimum wages, or only slightly higher. In Yorkton, which is a service centre for the region, jobs at the entry-level side of the scale are still very prevalent in the city.
And, the price escalations we have seen may be a long term trend, especially if the potash exploration in the area were to lead to a new mine development, with its near 5,000 on-site construction jobs followed by hundreds of permanent in-mine and spin-off jobs.The City recognizes the housing squeeze which appears poised to grip the city.
Recently, Yorkton Council unanimously supported Mayor James Wilson's appointment of a new short-term Housing Committee."The purpose of the Committee is to solicit input from both the public and industry to evaluate, and if warranted, provide recommendations to Council with respect to incentives and potential opportunities for future development in the housing sector," explained material circulated at the Council meeting.
"The intent of the committee is not to establish a long-term operational review but a cohesive group that will provide insight for immediate action."
And the Yorkton Chamber of Commerce is getting involved too.
The Yorkton Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a conference on the shortage of housing in Yorkton, Tuesday, April 5. "Objective of the Conference is to bring together all those with an interest in improving the housing situation in Yorkton and area. Listen to speakers share interesting ideas and experiences; have questions answered; and network with others interested in finding solutions to the housing crisis," states a Chamber webpage.
It should be noted they use the term 'crisis', an indication of the severity of the situation.
Certainly housing is critical to being safe and secure, and how we as a community manage that into the future will tell much about Yorkton as a city.
