Access to safe and affordable housing has become one of the most pressing issues faced by university students across Canada. While the impact is greatest on students themselves, their lack of accessible housing has serious downstream effects on our economy, downtown vibrancy and the ability to grow to meet needs of industry and our community.

Edmonton is experiencing significant increases in rental rates. The average rent for a one-bedroom unit in October 2024, was $1,362 – up 30 per cent from the average rent of $1,049 just three years ago – and rents are still rising. This financial burden is compounded by similar increases in food and transportation costs.

Students are having an increasingly difficult time balancing their responsibilities at school with the need to earn enough income to cover their cost of living. This has serious impacts on Alberta’s economic future as industry and local communities are telling us they need more talent to drive innovation, productivity and economic growth.

MacEwan University takes great pride in our place in O-day’min, our ward in the city, and our contributions to the vibrancy and safety of the downtown area. We currently bring over 20,000 people to the core every day during our fall and winter terms, and with our plans to grow to 30,000 students by 2030, we will have an even greater impact on downtown revitalization. We are not growing for growth’s sake. We are growing to meet the demographic demands of youth in high school and the demands from the economy.

Roughly one third of MacEwan’s students rent their accommodations and as we grow, more students will be looking for places to live, particularly downtown. The Downtown Investment Plan identified we need to double downtown’s population by 25,000 residents, and the Downtown Action Plan echoes this as a priority for downtown’s growth.

Students can be part of the solution. Our student residence of 846 beds is at capacity. We do not want to own, operate or maintain a new residence; we are focusing on our core mission of post-secondary education. Our approach to housing has been to identify and work with partners to support housing options for our students. We want the housing industry to do what it does best: Support accessible housing for our students.

About 18 months ago, we began bringing people together to find new and creative ways of ensuring downtown has more accessible housing for our students. We brought developers, property managers, social-housing leaders, the municipal government and students together. We surveyed our MacEwan students. We did predictive modeling of our growth. We’ve been working with this information and listening to these needs over the past many months. We believe we’re developing a responsive approach to MacEwan’s student housing that focuses on partnerships.

As a result, MacEwan invited potential partners to submit proposals for accessible housing for students. Interested vendors responded and committed to a set number of units at a discount for MacEwan students. Simply put, students have another option for accessible housing in proximity to MacEwan, and properties get help attracting renters to their building.

This fall, we will be piloting this new approach. If successful, the plan is to add more units with a variety of properties over the next few years, adapting the number and variety of units as demand and the housing market evolve.

Helping the private sector understand the affordability challenges that students are experiencing provides benefits beyond this project. Many housing options are not designed for students, and the conversations we’ve had will help the housing sector conceive and plan projects that take the needs, wishes and concerns of students into consideration. Things like 24-7 security, high-speed internet, laundry facilities, reasonable rent, intergenerational connections and gathering spaces are important.

Improving housing accessibility takes a creative approach and a sustained commitment from all stakeholders – government, business, industry, and other key players – to address the pressures our students and broader community are experiencing. This is a pilot and we anticipate, if successful, a new approach to securing housing for our students.

Dr. Annette Trimbee, president and vice-chancellor of MacEwan University. Read the original story.