Tension, uncertainty ahead of potential public housing redevelopment

“People were breaking down in tears,” recalls one resident at 1190 Hilliard Street, speaking about a meeting that took place at the public housing complex back in January, “storming out because they weren’t getting answers.”

The meeting was co-organized by Peterborough Housing Corporation (PHC), the largest provider of community housing in the region, who own and operate the building, and the City of Peterborough. It was intended to be an update on a $47.2 million project, led by PHC and the City, to demolish and redevelop the housing complex into new, denser units. 

However, the building’s current residents, largely low-income families, would have to be temporarily displaced and rehoused during this major construction project, and they say they’ve been unable to get answers to important questions, such as when this will take place and where they’ll be moved. They also have concerns about the PHC as landlords, claiming the building is in increasing disrepair and they have ongoing challenges in communicating with staff.

Peterborough Currents spoke to four residents at 1190 Hilliard, who agreed to speak only on the condition that they could remain anonymous, out of concern for their precarious housing situation, and to Richard Grotsch, PHC’s Director of Operations, to hear their perspective and learn more about the plans for this ambitious new housing development. 

A years-long process

The Hilliard complex currently consists of 28 townhouses, with 3 to 4 bedrooms each, and mostly houses low-income families with rent-geared-to-income subsidies. The current proposal is to demolish the building and replace it with a 141-unit housing complex, consisting of two buildings with 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom units, as well as a community amenity space, commercial space intended for a daycare, and offices.

The redevelopment plan was first revealed in 2023, when the Peterborough Examiner obtained a confidential PHC report, outlining plans for the Hilliard property and several others around the city. In July 2023, Peterborough Currents reported on the uncertainty that the residents were feeling at the time, who said that no one from PHC had spoken to them about the potential demolition or what would happen to them.

A meeting was eventually held by PHC with the residents in late 2023, “to calm our anxieties,” says one resident, but no specific timelines were given. “If it wasn’t for that insider leak,” claims one resident, “they never would have held that meeting.”

“What I don’t want,” says Grotsch, speaking to Currents, “is people hearing about what affects their housing through the media or their neighbours. So we’re trying to keep people very informed on this.”

In 2024, the project was put on indefinite hold due to lack of available funds. City councillor and PHC board chair Keith Riel said at the time that it was due to lack of support from federal and provincial governments, while MPP Dave Smith claimed that his office had never been contacted about funding for the project. 

Around this same time, city council also allocated $1.6 million in reserve funding to bring the project to ‘shovel-ready’ status, to move the project forward and aid with future funding applications. Work continued through 2025, including retaining a consulting team to prepare documents and a site plan. 

However, aside from a tour of a PHC building on Bonaccord Street, residents at Hilliard say they received no further updates from PHC until the January 22 meeting this year, when residents were informed that the project was going forward. Shortly after this, the City announced that they would be applying to the newly established federal Build Canada Homes fund for the Hilliard development.

The heated tone of the January meeting left uncertainty even about basic details such as timelines. One resident told Currents they understood that move-outs would start as early as this March, another indicated “around spring,” and another believed the timeline was closer to “the next two years.” 

When Currents asked PHC, they stated that construction can’t begin until funding is in place (either through Build Homes Canada or another source, if necessary), and there is “no established timeline” for the funding.

Finding space for families

The other significant concern for the residents is how and where they will be relocated. PHC has assured residents that PHC will work with them to find alternate housing during the construction, either in PHC-operated buildings or through agreements with private landlords. 

However, the lack of housing availability in Peterborough, particularly for rent-geared-to-income (RGI) units, makes this a challenge. As of 2024, Peterborough had a total of approximately 1,500 RGI housing units, with another 2,000 applicants on the waitlist. Housing Access Peterborough currently estimates a waiting time of “over 10 years” for general RGI applications. 

Adding to the difficulty is the fact that the Hilliard complex consists of larger, 3- and 4-bedroom units that house families with multiple children. “It’s hard as a parent to be on wait-and-see,” says one resident, “because you want to plan for your kids’ futures, but you can’t, because you don’t know where you’re going to live and what schools they’re going to go to.”

Says PHC, “On project approval, PHC staff would commence working with each household to better understand their individual needs including unit size based on the household composition. Staff will seek out other units with the appropriate number of bedrooms within the PHC portfolio and then work with individual households to develop their individualized relocation plan.”

Another point of confusion is around what happens once construction is complete. Some residents told Currents that they had been told that, once the new building was ready, they would be forced to move back in or risk losing their housing subsidy. Grotsch says this is incorrect: current residents will have “first right of refusal” to return to Hilliard or can choose to stay in their new units, and “their subsidy will carry with them” regardless.

Some residents, at least, will not be able to return. The proposed new complex includes no 4-bedroom units, meaning larger families will have to be permanently accommodated elsewhere.

“They’re trying to let it go.”

In the meantime, residents describe a building in poor repair, including cracks in the foundation (which they say have led to basement water leaks), broken kitchen tiles, broken doors, “ice cold” bedrooms, and plumbing leaks, as well as poor winter maintenance that leaves slippery walkways and poorly plowed driveways. They say PHC is slow to do repairs, and when they do, “most of the time it’s a band-aid solution.”

When a resident contacted PHC about a black mould problem in their master bedroom, they claim PHC told them to “just use some bleach and it will be fine.” 

Multiple residents claim these issues have gotten worse over the years, and tie it to the building’s upcoming demolition. “They’re trying to let it go,” says one resident.

Asked about this, PHC tells Currents, “PHC will continue to maintain all tenanted units at this site. All requests are assessed and prioritized to ensure urgent, and safety related issues are addressed immediately. General repairs are assessed and scheduled as quickly as possible. Residents are encouraged to continue contacting our building services department should there be any repairs needed in their unit or on the property.”

Residents say it’s been difficult to get any information from PHC throughout this process, with multiple emails and voicemails going unanswered, and “conflicting information depending on who you talk to” when they are able to get through.

“I get how this project looks really good for them,” says one resident, reflecting on the ambitious new housing development, which would bring a net of 113 new housing units to the city, “but you’re also displacing a lot of kids and disabled people. It’s always the same: the ones who get affected the most are the ones who need it the most.”