Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the Squamish Nation are leading by example when it comes to eliminating gatekeepers to expand housing. .“I just wanted to bring your attention to a great example of removing the gatekeepers,” said Poilievre in a Wednesday video. .“The number one culprit is that it takes a very long time to get a building permit unless you’re dealing with the Squamish.” .Squamish Nation Coun. Khelsilem said his tribe has approved 6,000 apartment rental units in Vancouver. Khelsilem said the rental units were approved on 10 1/2 acres of land. .“Yeah, a very small piece of land,” said Khelsilem. .“But we’re going to use it to generate a lot of wealth for our community and provide for a lot of housing for the middle class and working class in Vancouver.” .Poilievre said it is “desperately needed housing.” He said the Squamish Nation will be converting land the size of a tiny hobby farm into 6,000 places for people to call home. .The average rent for all property types in Canada reached $2,043 per month in September, representing a monthly increase of 4.3% and an annual rise of 15.4%, according to an October report from Rentals.ca. .READ MORE: Average rent in Canada goes above $2,000.The report said average rent is $100 more than the pre-pandemic peak from 2019. Average rent for a one-bedroom unit in Canada in September was $1,743, an increase of 3.5% from August and 2.7% from the same month in 2021. .Vancouver was the city where it cost the most to rent a one-bedroom residence at $2,590. .Poilievre said Squamish Nation could build this housing because it was able to receive approvals. Khelsilem said because the area is reserve land and owned by the tribe, it was able “to expedite the process and get through development, pre-development, and into construction at a much faster pace.” .He went on to say Squamish set the zoning for the land. It had to negotiate a service agreement, but he said it was able to do that quickly and move into construction. .He said the municipal process does not exist for it. It was able to make these decisions on its own as a government. .Poilievre said Squamish is able to go around and escape the rules for developers in Vancouver and bureaucracy with it. He added every development needs this approach, whether it is for pipelines, mines, other natural resource projects, or housing. .“The key is to get the gatekeepers out of the way, speed up the approval, and get it done,” he said.
