Evaluating the Feasibility of an Affordable Housing and Community Centre: A Case Study from Rural Ontario

Authors

  • Leslie A Benecki Kingston Community Health Centres
  • John S Andrew Queen's University
  • Yolande E Chan Queen's University

Abstract

This case study analyzes the feasibility of building an affordable housing and community services complex in rural Ontario. Lessons were learned about project scope, task order and importance, financial feasibility and potential funding sources, the importance of professional expertise, relationships with key partners, and governance. While the concept of affordable housing and a community centre has appeal and would benefit the community, it is not, as currently envisioned, financially viable. The addition of government grants and a reduction in the proposed project size and scope have the potential to make the project feasible. Keywords: feasibility analysis, affordable housing, public private partnerships, rural Ontario, not-for-profit governance

Author Biographies

Leslie A Benecki, Kingston Community Health Centres

Leslie Benecki’s experience includes private consulting, managerial roles at Alberta Health, serving as executive director of an Ontario Community Health Centre, and working as the manager of a Queen’s University research centre. She is currently the Human Resource Coordinator at Kingston Community Health Centres. Leslie has over 20 years of experience with a wide range of not-for-profit organizations as a volunteer, board member, or/and consultant. She has experience with housing, health care, food security, poverty reduction, and related community development initiatives. She is Past Chair of the Program Committee for the Canadian Chapter of the ACHE, a healthcare leadership organization, and is a member of the Canadian College of Health Services Executives. Ms. Benecki holds a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University and has an MBA and MHSA degree from the University of Michigan. She is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives.

John S Andrew, Queen's University

John has been Director of Queen’s University’s Executive Seminars on Corporate and Investment Real Estate since its creation in 2004. In 2010, he established the Queen’s Real Estate Roundtable (the “Q25”), a new and growing industry organization focused on executive development and applied research. Since 2000 he has also been a professor in the Queen’s School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP), where he teaches commercial real estate courses to graduate students. He also currently teaches real estate management in the Queen’s School of Business. John is a frequent speaker and media commentator on a broad range of real estate issues. He maintains a small professional practice offering independent facilitation, mediation and public consultation services, specializing in environmental, planning/land use, and real estate issues and disputes. John’s research is directly applicable to the commercial real estate sector, focusing on environmental issues in buildings and land, the management of real estate conflicts, the structuring of public-private partnerships, and the financial analysis of investment properties and development projects. John holds a Ph.D. and Master of Science in Planning from the University of Toronto, and a Bachelor of Science from The University of Western Ontario.

Yolande E Chan, Queen's University

Yolande E. Chan is an E. Marie Shantz Professor of MIS at Queen’s School of Business, Queen’s University. She holds a Ph.D. from the Richard Ivey School of Business, an M.Phil. in Management Studies from Oxford, and S.M. and S.B. degrees in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from M.I.T. She is a Rhodes Scholar. Dr. Chan recently served as Director, The Monieson Centre, Queen’s School of Business. The Monieson Centre facilitates community-university research partnerships, and coordinates projects focused on revitalizing rural Canadian communities. Dr. Chan conducts research on knowledge management, information systems strategy, and economic development. She has published her research in leading journals and sits on several journal editorial boards.

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Published

2014-06-25

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 2 (2014)

Section

Case Studies

License

Copyright for articles published in this journal is retained by the authors, with first publication rights granted to the journal. By virtue of their appearance in this open access journal, articles are free to use, with proper attribution, in educational and other non-commercial settings.