Close to 15,000 affordable and deeply affordable homes are “stuck” in Toronto’s development pipeline, according to a report prepared by the Housing Secretariat.
The Housing Secretariat said in an annual progress update for the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan on Thursday that these projects have accrued since 2020, and have been unable to move towards construction and occupancy phases “primarily due to lack of available federal and provincial grant funding and low-cost financing.”
As such, City staff are calling on the provincial and federal governments to provide $7.6B and $7.7B, respectively, in “outstanding capital and operating funding” by 2030.
The ask for over $15B in government funding and a laundry list of recommendations geared at getting more affordable housing off the ground in Toronto will be considered by the Planning and Housing Committee on September 28, and by City Council on October 11.
The annual update also highlights how the HousingTO plan has been furthered since 2022. As of June 2023, it says, the City has completed 1,082 new affordable and supportive homes, approved 3,340 new affordable rental homes, allocated over 3,300 housing benefits through the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit, and allocated $46M in funding through the Multi-Unit Residential Acquisition program.
The long-anticipated adoption of a regulatory framework for multi-tenant (rooming) housing and new zoning allowances for multiplexes are also underscored in the update.
Councillor Gord Perks — he stepped into the role of Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee last month — says that Thursday’s update shows that Toronto has been able to advance many of its intended goals.
Still, he says, “there is a lot more work to do to ensure Toronto is a more inclusive and equitable city where everyone has access to a safe and affordable home — work that should be led by more partnerships between the federal, provincial, and City governments and significant new and enhanced investments.”
