Through successive replications of its mixed-income, mixed-use residential tower model, the University of Winnipeg Community Renewal Corporation has become Winnipeg’s leading social real estate developer. Featuring green construction and generous common spaces, 40% to 51% of each tower’s units are affordable while the rest are rented at market or premium rates. With the completion of its new builds in 2026, the non-profit UWCRC will manage $200-million worth of housing assets off-campus. A new journal article by 3ci Senior Research Fellow Ted Jackson and UWCRC CEO Jeremy Read, entitled Less Talk, More Builds, takes readers through the origins, mandate, structure and project portfolio of this unique economic development vehicle. The piece is part of a special issue of the Engaged Scholar Journal on housing security. Amid North America’s affordable housing crisis, universities and colleges, engaged scholars and community leaders in cities across the continent should study both UWCRC and its residential tower model and consider adapting and replicating these innovative instruments of change. Access the article here.
To access the full journal, including this chapter: https://esj.usask.ca/index.php/esj/issue/view/5169/65