Ontario Construction News staff writer
City of Peterborough homebuilders were issued permits to start construction on 435 housing units in 2023, exceeding the one-year provincial target.
The province had imposed a housing target of 345 starts in 2023 and 4,700 new housing units in Peterborough by 2031. the City of Peterborough. The annual target increases to 392 housing units this year and 470 in 2025.
“Exceeding the provincial housing target demonstrates the commitment to doing everything in its power to ensure the local building industry will achieve the provincial housing targets,” said Mayor Jeff Leal. “More importantly, each of those housing unit starts means more homes in our community for individuals and families.
“We need more housing across the entire spectrum of housing. We are committed to doing what we can to encourage and promote the construction of new housing.”
The city has created a new dedicated customer service centre called Plan-Build Peterborough to assist with planning and building services inquiries and a Mayor’s Task Force for Housing Creation, which brings together housing development professionals to encourage and promote the construction of 4,700 new housing units by 2031.
However, high interest rates for financing development projects, inflationary price increases for construction materials, and the challenging labour market continue to impact builders.
“Housing is essential for the health of individuals, families and communities. We need to find new ways to encourage housing construction given the current conditions in Ontario and across Canada,” Leal said. “The members of this task force have considerable experience building housing and are in the field each and every day – they are well placed to make helpful recommendations.”
Task force members:
- Paul Bennett, Ashburnham Realty
- Chelsea Combot, Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services
- Brian Fenton, Peterborough Homes
- Hans Jain, Atria Development Corp.
- Hope Lee, Peterborough Housing Corp.
- Rebecca Schillemat, Peterborough and the Kawarthas Home Builders Association
- Brad Smith, AON Inc.
- Susan Zambonin, Habitat for Humanity Peterborough & Kawartha Region
By mid 2024, the task force is expected to present a final report with recommended actions that the City can take to facilitate the construction of 4,700 new housing units by 2031.