A Calgary alderwoman is opposing the construction of a new, affordable housing tower downtown, saying the project would move too many low-income people into one building and could end up creating a ghetto.
The Mustard Seed, a non-profit group that feeds and houses the poor, plans to build a 28-storey complex that would include 365 affordable housing units in the Beltline at 10th Avenue and Centre Street.
But Ward 8 Ald. Madeleine King said the city should find other, smaller properties that could be used for affordable housing.
"Although we have a desperate situation at the moment, it's very important that when we deal with affordable housing, we need to design affordable housing in a way that people can be good neighbours," she said.
"If we don't get it right, then we set up a situation that is ripe for drugs [and] victimization of people who are easy to find … We also increase the possibility of NIMBYism."
Having too many units together could result in a ghetto system, she warned.