Feds earmark more than $72M to build 220 new homes in Toronto

Minister of Housing Ahmed Hussen makes an announcement in Toronto on April 13, 2022.

The federal government has earmarked about $72.4 million to build 220 new housing units in Toronto as part of its 2022 budget.

The funding will be made available through the National Housing Co-Investment Funds (NHCF), which supports the creation and revitalization of mixed-income and mixed-use affordable housing.

Minister of Housing Ahmed Hussen made the announcement Wednesday alongside Toronto Mayor John Tory.

"This is what it takes to get affordable housing projects available for Torontonians, for Canadians," Hussen said.

"It takes government at all levels. It takes private sector, it takes non-profit organizations, and this is the kind of collaboration that is enabling us to be here today to make this really important announcement."

The new homes are part of the Birchmount Green project, a building that will be erected near Kennedy Road and Lawrence Avenue.

According to Hussen, the project will support women and children fleeing domestic violence, people facing mental health challenges, individuals with physical or intellectual disabilities, and those experiencing homelessness.

According to officials, residents living in these units will have access to a large amenity room, an accessible rooftop garden, a library with computers, a children's play area, bicycle and scooter storage and a nurse station.

There will also be two offices for "support service organizations that have been designed to provide a better environment to the residents of Birchmount Green," officials said. Few details were provided about what kind of supports would be offered, but Hussen did say that several non-profit organizations would provide skills-related training.

In the government's 2022 budget, there is about $2.9 billion in funding for the National Housing Co-Investment Fund, which will be used to create 4,300 new units across Canada and repair an additional 17,800 units.

The budget also proposes $500 million in funding through the NHCF to launch a new co-operative housing development program aimed at expanding co-op housing.