Toronto has made a variety of promises for how it would spend accelerator-fund money, including by speeding up housing approvals, creating affordable housing and protecting rental stock.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Toronto will get nearly half a billion dollars under a federal housing agreement – the largest payment yet to a municipality from Ottawa’s Housing Accelerator Fund, which requires cities to loosen zoning rules that protect neighbourhoods dominated by single-family homes.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Toronto on Thursday to announce $471-million in funding, a deal capping a week of announcements through the accelerator fund that add up to close to $900-million.
“It’s a great city. And if we want to keep it great we have to make homes more affordable,” he told reporters at the announcement.
“Today’s housing announcement is going to be a game-changer for the city of Toronto.”
The federal government says that, over three years, the money will fast-track nearly 12,000 new housing units. Over the next decade, according to Ottawa, it will “help spur the construction” of more than 53,000 homes.
The $4-billion accelerator fund was introduced in last year’s federal budget and is Ottawa’s highest-profile policy aimed at the housing-affordability crisis, which has undermined support for the federal Liberals as real estate and rental prices have surged across the country.
Federal Conservative Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre has made the cost of housing a key part of his attacks on government. And the Liberals have been rolling out accelerator-fund deals for months, upsetting some premiers who say Ottawa should stay out of their constitutional jurisdiction.
Before approval of Toronto’s funding, the city twice adapted its application, once after Mayor Olivia Chow took office and then again when council met last week.
During the meeting, councillors agreed to explore further relaxing rules on building multiunit residences; have staff examine restrictions on buildings that cast shadows, rules that preclude some designs; and examine B.C.’s more aggressive approach to zoning reform around transit stations.
Toronto has made a variety of promises for how it would spend accelerator-fund money, including by speeding up housing approvals; creating affordable housing; protecting rental stock; making it easier to build a variety of sizes of homes, such as garden suites and walk-up apartments; and adding density to existing sites.
“Addressing Toronto, Ontario and Canada’s housing crisis demands urgent action and new investments from all orders of government,” says a recent report, signed by Jag Sharma, Toronto’s deputy city manager for development and growth services.
“In terms of new supply, the City of Toronto recognizes that a range of new homes is needed across the full housing continuum to reduce pressures throughout the entire housing system, improve housing affordability and access, particularly for lower and middle-income households, and to support growth,” the report said.
After years of sustained increases, housing prices soared during the pandemic. A rapidly growing population has escalated the pressure on housing demand – Canada added about 431,000 people in the third quarter of this year alone, according to Statistics Canada – with rising interest rates also hurting affordability.
In the past week, the federal government has announced accelerator-fund agreements with Burnaby, Mississauga, Vancouver and Winnipeg, promising the four cities a total of $393-million. Toronto’s agreement pushes the week’s tally to $864-million.
In each case, the federal government required the cities to loosen their zoning regulations. That requirement has also backfired in some communities, where homeowners have long been protected from having apartment buildings or other multiunit residences next door.
Windsor’s city council last week voted against allowing four-unit residences citywide, with the mayor arguing that he had to protect existing homeowners. In response, federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser warned that the city risked losing out on accelerator-fund money.
In a late November meeting, Oakville council was dubious about the value of allowing more density in the wealthy community west of Toronto. The city’s accelerator-fund application has not been approved.
And at their own meeting in October, Mississauga councillors also expressed doubts about allowing four-unit residences citywide. Council was initially deadlocked, jeopardizing the city’s funding.
Mayor Bonnie Crombie, who had been on leave to campaign for the Ontario Liberal leadership, used strong-mayor powers on her return to force the change. On Monday, Mr. Fraser announced about $113-million for the city.
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With reports from Robert Fife