Consultation Strategy

The consultation strategy is intended to provide a multi-faceted way to gather information and facilitate feedback from a range of housing stakeholders and the broader community that can be used to inform the Housing Needs Assessment Update. The purpose of this strategy is to identify emerging housing issues, gaps and priorities; develop opportunities to create more affordable housing; and determine where efforts should be focused to get the best outcomes.

The planned consultation strategy includes:

Community Town Hall Sessions: Two Town Hall sessions took place during both the Needs Stage (Dec. 12, 2023) and Policy Stage of consultations (April 23 & 24, 2024). A presentation with group discussion targeting community members, stakeholders and general public interested in housing issues, was facilitated by Re/fact Consulting.

Focus Group Sessions: Smaller group discussions with a cross-section of targeted community stakeholders that have specific perspectives on housing and development, using structured questions and facilitated by the consultant group.

Key Informant Interviews: Individual interviews using guideline questions that target individuals from key entities or organizations with specific insights on housing issues. Informant interviews would also help to facilitate key partnerships, secure resources that address priorities, and determine ways of overcoming barriers to development.

Community Housing Survey: Our on-line survey, which ran through December 2023, until mid-January 2024, was designed to gather information related to housing issues in the community. Community members, various stakeholders and general public interested in housing issues were encouraged to participate - with over 450 individuals and groups offering responses.

Webpage for Project Info: Launched on Nov. 27, 2023, the "Build Up Gander" Housing Needs Assessment Update page will provide ongoing general information about this project including post-project updates, Town Hall presentations, Town Hall sessions, event announcements, and public survey results / outcomes.

Project Mailbox: the buildupgander@gandercanada.com email was established to provide an ongoing mechanism for open ended feedback, subject to the perspectives shared by the public.