Ottawa - Today, Sean Fraser, Canada's Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities, Paul Calandra, Ontario's Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Olivia Chow, Mayor of Toronto, and Colin Best, President of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO), released a joint statement:
"The three levels of government have finalized a Canada Community-Building Fund (CCBF) agreement, which will ensure that critical infrastructure that supports housing continues to be built, maintained, and expanded. The renewal of this agreement means that our communities' roads, bridges, and transit systems will be positioned to accommodate growth.
Infrastructure investments support affordable and inclusive communities that Canadians live and work in. The CCBF has paved roads like Rollins Drive and Chelford Crescent in Belleville, renovated community spaces like the Bayview Hill pool in Richmond Hill, and protected public spaces like the Centeen Park seawall in Brockville. The fund provides predictable and sustainable funding for communities to make sure that municipalities can keep making the investments their communities need.
The deal announced today will see the federal government invest $4.7 billion over the next five years.
We recognize the importance of infrastructure in increasing Canada's housing supply. By working together to strategically invest in projects aligned with regional housing goals, we will help increase the number of affordable homes in Ontario.
Through this agreement, we have aligned on three priority goals, including:
- Reporting on affordable units created to meet the needs of communities and increase capacity of the non-profit sector;
- Working across all orders of government to leverage public lands to meet housing needs; and
- Supporting innovation in construction techniques by committing to a provincial innovation strategy for modular and prefabricated housing, including working with the federal government to develop and adopt a design catalogue.
Through CCBF, we will work together to build healthy and vibrant neighbourhoods across the province.
We are taking a Team Canada approach to build more inclusive and connected communities, which will help support more housing by creating the public infrastructure that Ontarians need."
