Even the most ambitious federal plans to build housing stock across Canada will take years, maybe decades, to implement. In the meantime, Canadians have to squeeze a growing population into existing homes, condos and apartments. That takes innovation.
A Calgary-based nonprofit called the Canadian Alliance for Intergenerational Living presents one smart solution. It offers students affordable housing in vacant units at a retirement community—an arrangement that sounds like fertile ground for an oddball Netflix comedy. Apparently it’s a win-win for everyone involved.
Shannon Penner, a 45-year-old student at the University of Calgary who now lives with seniors, has written about her experience for Maclean’s. She pays an astoundingly low $530 per month in rent for a 430-square-foot studio in a retirement home with a bathroom and kitchenette. In exchange for cheap rent, she volunteers for 30 hours per month with residents. Now she’s a big advocate for this unconventional model. “Younger people gain access to affordable housing, and seniors receive companionship,” she says.
—Sarah Fulford, editor-in-chief, Maclean’s
