Close X
Monday, November 25, 2024
ADVT 
National

$115 M funding deal could help build 40,000 homes in Vancouver over decade: Trudeau

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 15 Dec, 2023 02:27 PM
  • $115 M funding deal could help build 40,000 homes in Vancouver over decade: Trudeau

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced a $115 million federal funding deal with the City of Vancouver that he said could see more than 40,000 new homes built over the next decade.

Trudeau said the deal would fast-track more than 3,200 new homes over the next three years.

The announcement came on Friday after the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said housing starts in Canada fell 22 per cent in November, with starts down 39 per cent in Vancouver.

Fraser said of the Vancouver deal that the cash from the government's Housing Accelerator Fund would cut barriers to building homes and "incentivize changes" at the municipal level.

Trudeau said the Vancouver deal would bring the total number of housing units "unlocked" by the accelerator fund to almost 300,000.

"This is well over the initial 100,000 we'd hoped to unlock when we announced the accelerator fund back in 2022," Trudeau said at a construction site on Vancouver's Westside where rental units are being built with the help of low-interest loans from the CMHC.

A news release from Trudeau's office said Vancouver would streamline rezoning and expand affordable rental programs, and the initiatives would "significantly improve the way housing is built" in the city.

Sim said the deal was not a "symbolic gesture", but a collective commitment to providing more homes and finding solutions to housing challenges.

He said he and his wife had bought a home 20 years ago in the neighbourhood where the announcement took place, and the homes that once stood on the construction site had accommodated about 30 people in six households.

"We're gonna see hundreds of people that have homes (here) in the neighbourhood that our family loved," he said of the project, which the CMHC said involved 118 units.

Sim called the new federal funding "incredibly generous."

The Opposition Conservatives said in a news release that Trudeau's Liberal government was "failing to build anywhere near enough homes."

The Conservatives pointed to the CMHC data, which said the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts in November came in at 212,624 units, down from 272,264 in October.

"This massive decline in housing starts means the cost of rent or a mortgage will only go up for Canadians across the country," the statement said.

MORE National ARTICLES

Canada's Joly criticizes lack of fuel in Gaza, warns that UN may have to pause aid

Canada's Joly criticizes lack of fuel in Gaza, warns that UN may have to pause aid
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says it is not acceptable that United Nations work to support Palestinian civilians will end before Wednesday night due to a lack of fuel. She says civilians must be protected and enough food, fuel and water must get into Gaza so that the UN's life-saving work can continue.

Canada's Joly criticizes lack of fuel in Gaza, warns that UN may have to pause aid

Wanted sex offender Randall Hopley arrested in Vancouver, police say

Wanted sex offender Randall Hopley arrested in Vancouver, police say
Police say high-risk sex offender Randall Hopley has been arrested in Vancouver. A statement from police says Hopley was picked up at about 6 a.m. on the city's Downtown Eastside and he is in custody.

Wanted sex offender Randall Hopley arrested in Vancouver, police say

B.C. poultry staff told to vaccinate against flu as avian strains spread among birds

B.C. poultry staff told to vaccinate against flu as avian strains spread among birds
British Columbia's provincial health officer says people living or working on poultry farms should "prioritize" getting influenza vaccinations as avian flu spreads among flocks this fall. Dr. Bonnie Henry says while avian flu does not transmit easily from birds to humans, infections "can happen and are very concerning" because of the potential for the virus to mix with human influenza and mutate into something much more contagious.  

B.C. poultry staff told to vaccinate against flu as avian strains spread among birds

No Canadians approved to leave Gaza on Friday were able to exit: Global Affairs

No Canadians approved to leave Gaza on Friday were able to exit: Global Affairs
Global Affairs Canada says none of the Canadians on Friday's list of foreign nationals approved to leave the Gaza Strip were able to exit. There were 266 Canadian citizens, permanent residents and their family members on the Friday list who hoped to cross into Egypt at the Rafah border crossing.  

No Canadians approved to leave Gaza on Friday were able to exit: Global Affairs

Health authority declares COVID-19 outbreak with 15 cases at Victoria-area hospital

Health authority declares COVID-19 outbreak with 15 cases at Victoria-area hospital
A COVID-19 outbreak has been declared at a Victoria area hospital. Island Health says in a statement the outbreak was declared Thursday at the centre unit of Saanich Peninsula Hospital, with 15 patients infected and all experiencing mild illness.

Health authority declares COVID-19 outbreak with 15 cases at Victoria-area hospital

Canada Post releases new stamp to mark arrival of Diwali

Canada Post releases new stamp to mark arrival of Diwali
Canada Post, the primary postal operator in the country, has issued a new stamp celebrating the arrival of Diwali, the festival of lights observed by Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and other communities across the world. The stamp, which was released in a special booklet of six, costing CA$ 5.52, is available for purchase at post offices across the country.   

Canada Post releases new stamp to mark arrival of Diwali