What the CMHC says it wants from cities seeking federal housing cash
Global News
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) released a list of 10 strategies that municipalities can undertake to become improve their chances of winning the grant.
As cities around the country push through changes to become eligible to receive a slice of the federal government’s $4-billion Housing Accelerator Fund, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has released a list of 10 strategies that municipalities can undertake to improve their chances of winning the grant.
“The Housing Accelerator Fund is a highly competitive program which has attracted considerable interest across Canada. The Housing Accelerator Fund was created to incentivize local governments to implement the structural and lasting reforms that will increase the supply of housing,” the CMHC said in a statement on Monday.
The Housing Accelerator Fund, a $4-billion federal funding program introduced in the last federal budget, earmarks funds for municipalities to support housing. These incentives are tied to zoning changes that would allow for more mixed and middle housing options to be built.
The CMHC said the top priority for any municipality looking to get federal funding is to end exclusionary zoning.
“Stop low-density zoning and regulation that excludes housing types such as affordable and social housing in residential areas,” it said, adding that cities should “encourage high density by allowing mixed-use development and high-density residential as-of-right within proximity to urban cores and transit corridors.”
In much of the country, zoning restrictions mean developers are only allowed to build either single-family homes or condo towers in residential areas. There is a huge chunk of housing options, often referred to as “missing middle housing,” that does not get built.
The federal government also wants cities to make municipal land available for housing and increase the efficiency of the approval process. According to the CMHC, cities must particularly speed up the approval process for rental and affordable housing.
To increase the viability of high-density, transit-oriented projects, the CMHC said cities must either reduce or eliminate parking standards. Residential buildings in many parts of Canada are required to build minimum parking standards for residents, which could be seen as an impediment to building more housing faster.
