Driving to work recently, I spotted a young woman on the sidewalk outside the Tzeachten mall on Promontory. Like a lot of university students, she had her hair a messy bun and was wearing comfy sweats. If it weren't for the shopping cart covered in tarps and loaded high with what I could only guess were belongings, I would have thought she was getting a latte on her way to class.

Who is homeless? We know that studies show people older than 55 are the largest growing demographic of first-time homeless and they don't know how to survive on the streets. Are we now seeing young adults losing their homes? 

Getting and keeping housing is even harder than ever. Families face rents and mortgages that I couldn't pay today. Young people living in their parents' basements put their dreams on hold because they can't afford to buy homes.

We need to build housing that people can afford, saving taxpayers money by reducing crime, health care, and emergency services costs. We can work with other government levels to find solutions like tiny homes, laneway homes, secondary suits, affordable housing projects, and rental assistance.