Municipalities and regional districts in British Columbia will benefit from almost $1.5 million in provincial funding to help them assess housing needs.
The first round of funding has been agreed involving 50 municipalities and 10 regional districts who will receive grants for developing housing needs reports to plan for long-term housing needs and support strong local economies.
“I am excited to see so many strong applications from municipalities and regional districts that are eager to identify and meet their housing needs, so people can live, work and continue to build prosperous lives in their communities,” said Selina Robinson, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. “Collectively, we need to work together to build the right kinds of homes for people across the province. These reports will give us the kind of community-specific information we need to make sure we meet people’s housing needs.”
A $5 million program of funding administered by the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) will provide funding for officials to comply with new legislation that will require them to collect data, analyze trends and develop a report every five years on current and anticipated housing needs.
These reports will include the need for affordable housing, rental housing, homes for seniors and those with special needs, and those families that are at risk of homelessness.
“Effective housing policy needs a high level of collaboration and co-operation between orders of government. This new provincial funding will improve data collection and consistency across communities and support evidence-based policy, as called for in UBCM’s housing report,” said Arjun Singh, president, UBCM.
