Guelph getting $21.4 million for housing in agreement with federal government

GUELPH, Ont. The southwestern Ontario city of Guelph is getting $21.4 million from the federal government to help fast track housing development. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in the city on Friday to announce the deal with Guelph, saying the funds would help speed up the building of nearly 750 new housing units over the next three years.

The funding is part of the $4 billion Housing Accelerator Fund, which is a federal initiative to encourage municipalities to make changes to bylaws and regulations that would spur more housing construction, in exchange for money. Some of the changes Ottawa has pushed for include denser zoning and faster issuance of permits.

The federal government says as part of its agreement with Guelph, the city will allow the building of multiplexes higher than four storeys and will allow more than four units per residential lot. It says the city will also work to streamline zoning bylaw approvals, create more residential housing programs and explore ways to use city owned land to create more housing.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 12, 2024..