Affordable worker housing is latest tourist town business hurdle

When he opened Fish & Sips with his wife in 2015, Paul Feather found hiring to be one among many challenges of running a restaurant with long hours on the main drag of Collingwood, Ont.

But after the COVID-19 pandemic struck and housing prices in vacation hotspots soared, the cod-and-calamari-slinging 49-year-old saw staffing as his No. The shortage of affordable rental housing is the main reason for this problem.

“It’s not only the affordability but also the availability. Feather states that there isn’t enough rental stock to choose from. saidFrom the restaurant’s new dining area.

His latest kitchen rental couldn’t find a spot in town, and he commutes by car — another obstacle when gas prices are high and regional public transportation lags.

Feather is increasingly relying on college and high school students to be front of house — “they are already living at home” — but under-18s are prohibited from serving alcohol and restricted to hosting, takingout or working the cash register.

He said, “It’s just too difficult.” said.

As a result, businesses in tourist hotspots that are far from big cities are feeling the pinch when it comes to affordable housing. Smaller communities are struggling to attract workers amid a labour crunch as well as rising rents.

Rentals.ca, a Canadian website to help you find apartments for rent, saidThe average rent for all Canadian properties on its site increased 10.5 percent year over year to $1888 per month in May. According to the Canadian Real Estate Association (CRA), the average national home value topped $700,000. This was an increase of 41% over the previous two years.

The cottage country of Ontario was no exception. According to a Royal LePage Report, the median price of an individual-family home in Southern Georgian Bay (which includes Collingwood) rose by nearly 28% in 2021 compared to the previous year, to $881,000. Prices rose by 49% in Ontario’s Muskoka, 29% in Quebec’s Laurentians, and 26% in Ontario’s Eastern Townships.

This trend has no signs of slowing down, as it affects rental prices. Re/Max Canada predicts that the average residential price in Canada’s “recreational” regions will increase by 20% for the remainder of this year. said last month.

The falling unemployment rate is further aggravating labour problems for small-town tourists and retailers. It was 5.1% in May. This marks three consecutive months with a new record low in this key metric.

“The problem was so bad this year, that many employers reverted back to buying campers to host their staff,” saidColleen Kennedy is the executive director of Gros Morne National Park’s Gros Morne Cooperating Association. Others are trying to build or purchase units for them.

Bilingual employees are crucial to a federally-run park. Specialty chefs are especially difficult to find, as property and rental costs exceed young people’s means. said.

“It’s not an issue of minor importance, it is a major problem. Without the right human resources, how can you grow the industry? It’s really difficult this season for everyone. It won’t get any easier; we expect tourism growth.”

Airbnb offers short-term rentals, which can further complicate matters and increase tourism.

“When people purchase properties where they would normally have tenants, they are putting them up for rent on Airbnb instead. It’s cheaper than having a full-time tenant. saidEllen Timms is a spokeswoman of the Wasaga Beach Chamber of Commerce.

She stated that “the staffing shortage is very real.” saidThis also means that workers are “run off the feet.”

Collingwood is home to around 300 illegal short-term rentals. A recent report by the town’s licensing and compliance officer revealed that these properties were found on platforms like Flipkey, VRBO, and Airbnb.

The west isn’t much better.

According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, Nelson, B.C.’s counterculture enclave, had a rental vacancy rate in October of 0.6%. According to a report by Re/Max on “cabin-and-cottage” trends, Vancouver Island’s Tofino saw an average home sale price increase of 51 percent to $1.72million over the first three month of 2022.

Nancy Myles, a long-standing housing shortage in Banff, Alta., inspired her to create Banff Accommodation. This for-profit organization rents communal spaces for three to six months to workers who parachute in to work gap-years.

Fairmont Hotels and Resorts and the Sunshine Village ski resort offer accommodation to their staff. said Myles.

She explained that anyone who lives in Banff works in the tourism sector, which isn’t really historically high-earning. People aren’t bankers; they’re usually doing minimum-wage jobs. said. This is why housing must be able to accommodate “transient” residents.

The inflation pandemic and the subsequent increase in labour cost caused by outside property investors, near Collingwood. It also revealed a lack in child-care services, inadequate public transit, and local planning that failed foster rental units “in favor of outdated single detached developments.” saidAndrew Siegwart is president of Blue Mountain Village Association, which is a marketing organization for local businesses and the resort.

Siegwart wants more diversity in municipal planning, and provincial policies that support smaller tourist areas. She also points out that inclusionary zonating — a regulatory tool that allows municipalities limit the amount of new construction that is allowed to be built — does not apply lower-density areas.

“Attainable housing, and related infrastructure, has been our biggest case for five years,” he stated. said.

It doesn’t appear that it will soon fade.

This report by The Canadian Press first appeared July 1, 2022.