Source: Government of Canada News
Parliamentary Secretary Sousa highlights new federal property in Mississauga available for housing development.
October 16, 2024 – Mississauga, Ontario – Public Services and Procurement Canada
Everyone deserves a place to call home. However, for many across the country, home ownership and renting is out of reach due to the unprecedented housing crisis Canada is facing. We need to build more homes, faster, to get Canadians into homes that meet their needs, at prices they can afford. That’s why in Budget 2024 and Canada’s Housing Plan, the federal government announced the most ambitious housing plan in Canadian history: a plan to build 4 million more homes.
As part of this plan, the Government of Canada is identifying properties within its portfolio that have the potential for housing, and is actively adding them to the Canada Public Land Bank. Wherever possible, the government will turn these properties into housing through a long-term lease, not a one-time sale, to support affordable housing and ensure public land stays public.
Today, Charles Sousa, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement, highlighted a property located at 1 Front Street East in Mississauga, Ontario, that is now available for housing development through the Canada Public Land Bank. This property is one of 14 new properties added to the land bank last week.
A total of 70 federal properties have now been identified as being suitable to support housing. This list will continue to grow in the coming months, with further details on listed properties available soon.
As part of the initial launch of the Canada Public Land Bank in August 2024, the Canada Lands Company, in partnership with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, issued a call for proposals for 5 properties located in Toronto, Edmonton, Calgary, Ottawa and Montréal. The call for proposals for the properties in Toronto and Montréal closed on October 1, 2024, and evaluations have begun. The call for proposals for the Edmonton, Calgary and Ottawa properties will close on November 1, 2024.
To provide feedback on the land bank and its properties, the Government of Canada launched a call for housing solutions for communities: a secure online platform.
To date, the Government of Canada has already received interest and feedback from provinces, territories and municipalities, as well as developers, housing advocates and Indigenous groups. This information will be used to develop and bring more properties to market starting this fall.
To solve Canada’s housing crisis, the federal government is using every tool at its disposal. The Government of Canada is accelerating its real property disposal process to match the speed of builders and the urgency of getting affordable homes built for Canada.