Fall economic statement falls short: CCA, FCM, ACEC

Ontario Construction News staff writer

The federal government’s fall economic statement “fell short” in important areas including measures to shore up Canada’s trade-enabling infrastructure, according to a statement from the Canadian Construction Association.

“Yesterday’s statement focused heavily on necessary housing investment, but fell short in other important areas, including measures to shore up Canada’s trade-enabling infrastructure,” the CCA stated in a press release. “The announcement to leverage the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) to support more housing may finally recognize that more homes cannot be built without essential infrastructure to support it, but these details are missing.

“The industry is expecting to see a long-term, comprehensive infrastructure investment plan in the federal government’s 2024 budget.”

The federal government released the fall economic statement this week, promising to deliver 101,000 new homes by 2032.

Starting in the next fiscal year, Ottawa will open a $15 billion loan funding under the Apartment Construction Loan Program — to spur the construction of affordable homes. The program is expected to cost the federal government $342 million.

The measure won’t apply to substantial renovations of existing units — a limit the government says is meant to reduce the chances of owners “renovicting” tenants.

“Our economic plan is about building a strong economy that works for everyone, and this fall economic statement is the next phase of our plan,” said Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland. “With a focus on supporting the middle class and building more homes, faster, we are taking action on the priorities that matter most to Canadians today and we will continue doing everything we can to deliver for Canadians from coast to coast to coast.”

Measures announced by Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland include:

• The new Canadian Mortgage Charter
• Accelerating how communities build housing
• Building more affordable housing
• More financing for apartment construction
• Cracking down on non-compliant short-term rentals

Read more about Canada’s Housing Action Plan.

However, according to Scott Pearce, president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), it is “not feasible” to rapidly scale up new housing construction without also investing in the municipal infrastructure that supports it.

“We are concerned that the Fall Economic Statement does not reflect the scale of infrastructure investment required to meet the national housing supply gap, and FCM will be looking to Budget 2024 for a comprehensive, ambitious investment in community infrastructure that matches the record-breaking population growth currently underway in Canada,” he said.

 The Association of Consulting Engineering Companies – Canada (ACEC-Canada) also has concerns about the feds plan to building homes.

“Building new housing supply is critical,” says John Gamble, ACEC-Canada’s president and CEO. “What is less obvious, but equally important, is infrastructure—such as roads, transit, electrical grids, water and wastewater—that allows these buildings to actually become homes. Otherwise, many municipalities may not have the capacity to deliver what Canadians need.”