Billions fell on Longueuil on Thursday for investments in housing which were however slow to materialize despite successive announcements.
In chilly weather under the snowflakes, Prime Ministers Justin Trudeau and François Legault announced new funds of $1.8 billion for the construction of housing behind the Habitation Espoir project, a building almost completed with 30 social housing units intended for people at risk of homelessness or who are moving out of it.
François Legault specified that his government, for five years, “invested” 3.9 billion in housing to which is added the sum of 1.8 billion – financed in equal parts of 900 million dollars by Ottawa and Quebec – all recognizing that “the challenge now is to build”.
The housing crisis, which Mr. Legault now describes as a “really serious problem,” is attributable, according to him, to increased immigration, the increase in the number of people living alone, high mortgage rates and “hyperregulation “.
A bureaucracy that continues to swell
“The challenge we have is to remove bureaucracy. This is really the big problem because there too we discourage potential owners with too much bureaucracy,” he said.
At his side, the mayor of Longueuil, Catherine Fournier, recognized that cities have clearing work to do. “It’s true that we ask a lot, that it’s very heavy, that it can be very tedious. »
Mme Fournier, who chairs the housing committee at the Union of Municipalities, explained that “the reality is that cities build their regulations, add and add regulations, but very rarely are we removed”, giving as example that there are 1800 zoning regulations in Longueuil alone.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who participated in the announcement, added that these “tedious and sometimes complex” processes are a recurring problem across Canada. “We heard from developers, partners, mayors, provinces who said that we must accelerate densification, change zoning rules, speed up permit processes. »
Justin Trudeau’s optimism
But Justin Trudeau says he is convinced that this crisis will be resolved. “We have experienced, in our history, housing crises, whether at the end of the Second World War, whether it was when boomers sought to buy houses and we were able to respond to them and we will respond to them still today. »
The Minister responsible for Housing, France-Élaine Duranceau, explained that the amendments she made to Bill 31 on housing will allow municipalities “to skip several steps.”
“My commitment is that we move without delay from this funding announcement to the construction of the projects. It’s time to execute. It must come out to meet the needs of our fellow citizens,” she insisted.
The sum of 1.8 billion is made up of $900 million from the Federal Fund to accelerate housing construction, an amount that the Quebec government matched in its economic update earlier this week. François Legault was delighted to see this money granted by Ottawa without conditions.
8,000 social and affordable housing units
The average cost of building housing is $225,000 and the sum announced Thursday should therefore make it possible to build 8,000 social and affordable housing units – within four years, we promise – including 500 which will be reserved for itinerant or at risk of becoming one.
In Quebec, the spokesperson for Québec solidaire in terms of housing, Andrés Fontecilla, welcomed the announcement, but denounced the deadline planned for the construction of the 8,000 units, while his party is calling for the start of construction. of 10,000 social housing units in the next two years.
Mr. Fontecilla also recalls that, according to a motion unanimously adopted by the National Assembly, “the 1.8 billion invested must imperatively be devoted to non-market social housing, whether HLM, housing NPOs or cooperative housing.