Previously:
Federal plan: London, Calgary, GST on new rental housing
Housing Accelerator update, weeks 2-4: Halifax, Mississauga, Vaughan
Week 5: Hamilton, Mississauga, Halifax, Metro Vancouver
Week 6: Quebec, Kitchener, Guelph, Burlington, Ajax, Mississauga
Week 7: Mississauga, Brampton, Ajax, Moncton, Richmond Hill, Kelowna, Metro Vancouver, Edmonton
Week 8: Metro Vancouver, Waterloo, Charlottetown, Winnipeg
Week 9: Kitchener, Quebec
Week 10: Calgary, Winnipeg, Moncton
Week 11: Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg
Week 12: Richmond Hill, Toronto, Oakville
Week 14: Windsor, Toronto, Vancouver
Week 15: agreements with Mississauga, Burnaby, Winnipeg, and Toronto
Week 17: agreement with Iqaluit
Week 18: agreements with Summerside, Surrey, and Guelph
Week 19: agreements with Burlington, St. Catharines, Saint John, Kingston, and Ajax
Fredericton, NB
Alexandre Silberman, CBC: $10M in federal funds for multi-unit housing in Fredericton.
Fredericton will receive more than $10 million from the federal government to help encourage the rapid development of nearly 300 housing units in the next three years.
The changes to cut red tape and encourage development could provide enough incentive to build 2,500 homes in Fredericton over the next decade, according to the federal government.
Several of the new programs require zoning and bylaw changes, including a condition that the city allow four-unit dwellings by default in all residential areas.
$10.3M would build about 21 homes at $500K each, so 300 homes is about 15X as many, and 2500 homes is more than 100X as many.
More:
Savannah Awde, Telegraph-Journal: City gets $10M from feds to help build housing faster. Notes that the city’s initial application was for $20M.
Aidan Cox, CBC: Ottawa helps drive push for more housing in Fredericton, but in whose backyard? Describes intense opposition to recent projects. “A large proposal in the Golf Club Road neighbourhood narrowly passed a vote at council in November after neighbours mounted an intense campaign against it that saw more than 150 letters of objection sent to city hall. And in December, council voted down a housing proposal on Gibson Street following a similar campaign by neighbours in that area.”
Richmond, BC
Howard Chai, Storeys: Richmond, British Columbia Receives $36M Via Housing Accelerator Fund.
On Monday, the Government of Canada announced that it has reached an agreement with the City of Richmond that will see the city receive $35.9M through the federal government's Housing Accelerator Fund.
The funding is expected to fast track over 1,000 units of new housing over the next three years and 3,100 over the next decade.
$36M would build 72 homes at $500K each, so 1000 homes is more than 12X as many, and 3100 is more than 40X as many.
I’m curious whether Richmond city council will accept the recent provincial legislation requiring all BC municipalities to update their bylaws by June 30 to allow multiplexes, or whether they’ll fight it. And if they fight it, whether the federal government will cancel the subsequent Housing Accelerator payments.
Milton, ON
Tamara Shephard, Milton Canadian Champion. 'We're celebrating family and a place to call home': $22M CMHC funding to speed up Milton housing approvals.
The Town of Milton will fast-track the building of more than 800 new homes in the next three years with $22 million from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Housing Accelerator Fund.
The work is expected to help spur the construction of nearly 4,700 homes over the next decade.
$22M would build 44 homes at $500K each, so 800 homes is about 20X as many, and 4700 homes is more than 100X as many.
Included in the town’s housing action plan:
• Develop affordable homes
• Permit four units on the same lot as-of-right
• Increase housing density close to major transit areas
• Increase the supply of rental homes
• Enhance permit approval timelines
• Delegate decision-making for minor zoning variances to town staff
Whitby, ON
Tim Kelly, Whitby This Week: Feds provide nearly $25 million to Whitby to help town ease way, push for 656 more units in 3 years.
The federal government and Town of Whitby reached a nearly $25-million deal announced Tuesday to help incentivize the construction of 656 housing units over the next three calendar years.
The $24.9 million Whitby is receiving from the Housing Accelerator Fund is being provided by the feds in a four-tier basket, with 25 per cent immediately, followed by 25 per cent in each of the next three years.
A federal press release notes:
The Town of Whitby will fast track over 650 housing units over the next three years. Whitby estimates this will create more than 18,000 homes over the next decade.
$25M would build 50 homes at $500K each, so 650 homes is more than 12X as many, and 18,000 homes is more than 300X as many.
The town’s housing action plan includes:
• allowing various densities in the community
• expediting the housing approval process through electronic permitting
• allowing four units as-of-right across the town to create additional housing units on residential lots
• disposing of town land to build new affordable housing
• the creation of a Community Improvement Plan (CIP)
• development of pre-approved housing designs
• promotion of modular homes and alternative construction materials
Squamish, BC
Andrew Hughes, Squamish Chief: District of Squamish receives $7M from federal government.
MP for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country, Patrick Weiler, announced funding of $7 million from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Housing Accelerator Fund that aims to help the District build 200 housing units over the next three years and help spur the construction of over 1,350 homes over the next decade.
$7M would build 14 homes at $500K each, so 200 homes is more than 12X as many, and 1350 homes is about 100X as many.
“Business as usual will not solve the drastic housing challenges that we face today, so we need systemic change,” said Weiler. “In Squamish, the systemic change looks like accelerating the development of affordable housing and non market housing units by reducing procedural and process barriers. It's allowing increased density and more homes along core transit networks by introducing zoning permissions for six units on single lots.”