The City of Quebec is giving itself three years to significantly accelerate the construction of housing on its territory. In addition to social housing, it opens the door to a series of new solutions such as the conversion of offices into housing, the abolition of parking standards and the removal of affordable apartments from private stock.
“If we allow the market to self-regulate, we allow the crisis to amplify,” declared Mayor Bruno Marchand during a press conference on Wednesday. “We are going to transform our posture to do things differently. »
The action plan “accelerated” over three years presented on Wednesday aims to build 80,000 new housing units by 2040. This is more than double what the City had previously planned, namely the addition of 28,000 housing units for 2036.
If we let the market self-regulate, we allow the crisis to amplify
Around 10% of these 80,000 new constructions would be reserved for social and affordable housing.
This time, the City of Quebec includes in its calculations not only the number of “new households” expected in its demographic forecasts, but also the residents and temporary workers likely to pass through its territory.
A new toolbox
To achieve this, the City wants to support the conversion of offices into housing, the construction of tiny houses and accessory dwelling units.
The administration is also setting new targets for issuing permits. In particular, it would put an end to requests subject to “discretionary” decisions by the planning commission and the district council. Clearer standards would, it is said, make the process more efficient.
The capital will also abolish minimum parking standards, that is to say the number of spaces minimum required for each housing unit built.
It also plans to acquire affordable rental properties on the existing market to prevent rental prices from increasing.
Better financial support for first-time buyers is also on the agenda, but efforts in recent years in this area have yielded disappointing results in the past.
Finally, the City wants to maximize the potential for densification along corridors served by public transit while promoting the development of neighborhoods focused on affordable housing.
The planned cost of the measures is $605 million over three years, but it is based on the contribution of $340 million from the Quebec government and $110 million from the federal government, through the Fund to Accelerate Housing Construction, the sums of which are not have not yet been unlocked.
All of its measures aim to bring the vacancy rate back to the equilibrium level of 3%. It currently stands at 1.6%.