The federal government moved to create a new housing Crown corporation but stopped short of saying how many homes it would actually build, raising fresh questions about Ottawa’s plan to fix Canada’s housing shortage.Blacklock's Reporter says Housing Minister Gregor Robertson introduced Bill C-20, calling it the next step in addressing what he described as a national housing crisis, even as he declined to attach any housing-start targets to the legislation.“This is just a start,” Robertson said. “We’re at the very beginning of the work that is needed, but despite the challenges we are building momentum.”The bill would establish Build Canada Homes, a new Crown corporation backed by $11.5 billion and governed by a chief executive officer and board of directors. The new agency would take over some responsibilities from Canada Lands Co., a Crown corporation dating back to 1956 and best known for owning the CN Tower.According to the legislation, Build Canada Homes would dispose of public lands, provide advice, subsidize public housing, and spend in ventures or enterprises through the acquisition and development of property intended to increase the supply of affordable housing.“We are in a housing crisis, one that is the result of three decades of under-spending in the construction and maintenance of Canada’s affordable housing,” Robertson told reporters. “At this pivotal time in Canada, Canadians elected us with a mandate to build.”.Asked how the government would acquire land, Robertson said Ottawa already controls property that could be developed.“There’s an existing land bank of property that can be developed,” he said.When questioned about the absence of housing targets, Robertson said none have been set for the new Crown corporation.“Build Canada Homes as a Crown corporation will clearly be accountable to Canadians and government,” he said. “There aren’t top line targets set for the number of homes to build.”Robertson said construction volumes would depend heavily on private sector participation.“The number of homes we can deliver does rely on how much private capital we can attract and crowd into finance projects,” he said. “We’ll be pushing to attract as much private capital as possible, getting far more affordable housing built than in the typical model of just public funding.”The announcement comes as housing supply continues to lag demand. Urban housing starts totalled 241,171 last year, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation data. .Cabinet has said restoring affordability would require 500,000 housing starts per year, a level never before reached in Canada.Robertson acknowledged last October that the 500,000 target remains years away.“That certainly will take many years to achieve given the changes that need to be made in the industry,” he told the Commons finance committee. “At this point we don’t have the labour force to manufacture at that scale.”Pressed by Conservative MP Jasraj Hallan of Calgary East on when Canada would first hit 500,000 starts in a single year, Robertson pointed to a long ramp-up period.“The language we have used is ‘over the next decade,’” he said. “It is still very aggressive and ambitious to get to 500,000 over the next decade.”Asked again to identify a specific year, Robertson said construction would gradually increase.“The goal is to get to 500,000, to double construction, over the next decade, so it’s ramping up to that level,” he said. “That will start to make up the ground of the gap that we have in housing supply.”
