CANADA SUPPORTS 50 NEW AFFORDABLE HOMES IN SIMCOE

SIMCOE, ON, July 7, 2022 /CNW/ - Everyone deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. 

Today, Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, alongside Jeff Neven, CEO of Indwell, announced over $10 million in federal funding to create an estimated 50 new homes through the Government of Canada's Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI). 

Located at 41 Norfolk Street, the project will be operated by Indwell and will convert a former inn to create bachelor and one-bedroom units for people living with a disability, including mental health.  All units will be full apartments with a washroom, sleeping quarters, and a kitchen.

New investments under the RHI will create thousands of good jobs in the housing and construction sector, grow the middle class, and build back stronger communities while getting us closer to our goal of eliminating chronic homelessness in Canada.

"Everyone deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. With this announcement, our government is creating more affordable homes for those who need it most, including people living with a disability, in Simcoe. This investment through the Rapid Housing Initiative is a crucial step to support those most vulnerable and these new homes will offer their residents stability and safety. This is another way our National Housing Strategy is ensuring no one is left behind." ? Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion

• The Rapid Housing Initiative (RHI) is a $2.5 billion program under the National Housing Strategy (NHS) to help address the urgent housing needs of vulnerable Canadians, especially in the context of COVID-19, through the rapid construction of over 10,000 units of affordable housing.
• The RHI takes a human rights-based approach to housing, serving people experiencing or at risk of homelessness and other vulnerable people, including women and children fleeing domestic violence, seniors, young adults, Indigenous peoples, people with disabilities, people experiencing mental health and addiction issues, veterans, LGBTQ2S+ individuals, racialized and Black Canadians, recent immigrants, and refugees.
• Units are intended to be constructed within 12 months of funding being provided to program applicants (with some exceptions). Units in the North and remote communities are intended to be constructed within 18 months.
• Budget 2022 proposes to provide $1.5 billion over the next two years to extend the RHI and create 6,000 additional affordable housing units across Canada, with at least 25% of funding going towards women-focused housing projects.
• The Government of Canada's National Housing Strategy (NHS) is an ambitious, 10-year plan that will invest over $72 billion to give more Canadians a place to call home.

• As Canada's authority on housing, CMHC contributes to the stability of the housing market and financial system, provides support for Canadians in housing need, and offers unbiased housing research and advice to all levels of Canadian government, consumers and the housing industry. CMHC's aim is that by 2030, everyone in Canada has a home they can afford, and that meets their needs. For more information, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn and Facebook.
• Check out the National Housing Strategy Housing Funding Initiatives Map to see the affordable housing projects that have been developed across Canada. 

SOURCE Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation