The City of Kingston has introduced a new initiative designed to expand the rental housing market by offering property owners financial assistance to develop Additional Residential Units (ARUs). These ARUs, which can be located within or on the same lot as single-family homes, semi-detached homes or townhomes, are also known as second homes, granny flats, carriage houses or tiny homes.
Jayne Hartley, Director of Housing and Human Services, emphasized the importance of this program as part of the city’s broader strategy to improve rental housing supply. “This initiative is one part of the city’s strategy to increase rental housing supply,” she explained. “ARUs not only increase supply in the rental market, but also make homeownership more affordable, support seniors as they age in place, and contribute to a diverse rental housing supply in the community.”
Under the program, the city offers up to $40,000 in financial assistance for the development of freestanding backyard ARUs and up to $30,000 for interior units such as basement apartments. Additional funding is available for creating accessible units, upgrading water services and installing rough-in plumbing for future ARU developments.
The ARU incentive program, approved by council on August 13, is part of Kingston’s participation in the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Housing Accelerator Program. The initiative is funded with $1,250,000 from the federal government.
This program is one component of the city’s broader efforts to address rental housing needs. Other initiatives include zoning changes to encourage medium and high density development, the Rental Housing Community Improvement Plan, and partnerships with nonprofit and private developers to make rental housing affordable at various levels.
Property owners interested in applying for the program can find eligibility criteria and application forms on the City’s website. Applications can be submitted through the MyKingston portal. For more information, contact [email protected] or 613-546-2695, ext. 4949.
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