Caledon Area Families For Inclusion hosts housing workshop

By ZACHARY ROMAN

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A local group recently hosted a housing workshop at the Humber River Centre in Bolton to discuss inclusive housing and more. 

Caledon Area Families For Inclusion (CAFFI) partnered with Caledon councillors Tony Rosa, Cosimo Napoli, and Mario Russo for a housing workshop on May 4.

Michael Brunetto is one of the coordinators of CAFFI, which supports families with loved ones with differing abilities, and he helped lead the workshop.

“We came together to discuss (how) we feel the developers and builders can partner with us, in terms of what the actual needs are in the community, primarily about housing for those who are most vulnerable, those who have complex care needs,” said Brunetto. 

He said right now, there's a lack of availability of housing for people with complex care needs in Caledon. By working with councillors, Brunetto said CAFFI can help Caledon be prepared to show developers what needs are for inclusive housing in Caledon.

“We want to make sure that this demographic doesn't get lost in all of the planning,” said Brunetto. “It's not only affordability, but availability of services.”

Brunetto said he was really happy with the turnout for the workshop.

Patricia Franks is another CAFFI coordinator who helped run the workshop. 

“We invited community members as well as parents and people that work in the field to participate, so we have a good variety of perspectives around the tables,” said Franks. “Housing is a very big need in Caledon. We know that a lot of housing is going to be built in the next 10 years and that housing has to include people with developmental disabilities.”