Jurisdiction Doesn't Solve Housing in Niagara Falls, Coordination Does

Some talk about housing as if it belongs to one level of government

But residents don't live inside bureaucratic boundaries--they live in outcomes.

Municipal zoning determines what can be built.

Provincial legislation shapes how development happens.

Federal lending rules define who can afford to participate.

Individually, each can block progress.

Together, they unlock it.

This is why dismissing accessibility concerns with 'that's not municipal jurisdiction' misses the larger point.

It protects process instead of serving people.

Real leadership asks:

How do we align across all three levels to move from barriers to solutions?

An additional insight from the Niagara Housing Symposium (Nov 14th)--

Mayor Terry Ugulini of Thorold highlighted the rapidly expanding multi-modal trade routes around the Welland Canal. This emerging economic corridor could bring prosperity closer to home--strengthening our region's capacity to support and afford more housing.

In my previous housing post, I identified economic stagnation as a barrier to affordability. This development suggests that barrier may be shifting.

Economic growth and housing access are not separate conversations.

They rise together.