News Release

 

Mayors of Canada's biggest cities calling on government partners to address growing housing crisis

Vancouver, BC –Canada’s Big City Mayors’ Caucus (BCMC) is calling on its provincial, territorial and federal partners to confront the growing housing crisis across the country. The BCMC, a group representing 22 of the largest cities in Canada, met today in Vancouver ahead of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ (FCM) Annual Conference and Trade Show.

“The rising cost of housing is an issue we see in cities across the country,” said Gregor Robertson, Mayor of Vancouver and Chair of BCMC. “Cities are ready and willing to help protect the economy and solve this housing crisis but we need federal and provincial partners who are committed to working with us.”

$1.7 billion annually in federal housing investments are set to expire with the greatest drop in funding, up to $500 million a year, ending between 2014 and 2019. This will put more than half a million Canadians at risk of losing their homes unless federal, provincial, and territorial governments take action.

The BCMC is calling for a new housing partnership by all orders of government dedicated to:

- Eliminating chronic homelessness through proven strategies
- Stimulating new rental and affordable housing construction with tax incentives or other measures
- Preserving and renovating existing social housing units
- Housing workers to support a growing economy

Canada’s housing crisis is too big and complex for any single order of government to solve on its own, given the thousands of builders, investors and community partners working within a web of federal, provincial, and local policies.

With the new 10-year infrastructure plan announced in Budget 2013, the federal government built the kind of practical partnership needed to meet this type of national challenge. This partnership must be expanded.

“Record levels of household debt, new economic realities and changing demographics mean we can no longer rely solely on home ownership to meet Canada’s housing needs,” added Robertson. “Investing in housing is one of the most effective ways to both create jobs and boost economic activity in Canada today."

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Media contact:

Shaune MacKinlay
Office of Mayor Mike Savage
490-6531