On numbers alone, the City of Barrie knocked it out of the ballpark.
Premier Doug Ford was in Barrie on Friday morning with a cheque for more than $6.3 million, a reward to the city for exceeding its provincially-mandated target by breaking ground on 1,716 new housing units last year, 102 per cent more than what was expected of the municipality.
"Barrie is getting it done on housing, and we are proud to reward them for their success," said the Premier.
The money comes from the Building Faster Fund, $1.2 billion over three years announced by the province last summer to give municipalities more incentive to speed up home construction.
To get the cash, municipalities must achieve at least 80 per cent of their annual housing targets.
City officials have stated previously they are well on their way to reaching the province's target of 23,000 new housing units by 2031.
The government has admitted its push to construct 1.5 million new homes in Ontario by 2031 is aggressive, but one that Paul Calandra, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, says is necessary.
"It's a target we have to meet in order to match the amount of people who want to come here, the jobs that need to be filled, and for communities like Barrie, it's what they can do in the time frame that we have put before them."
He rejected any suggestion the numbers laid out by the government are pie-in-the-sky, but to get there, Calandra acknowledged in a chat with Barrie 360 after the news conference that there was work to do.
The minister said more has to be done on infrastructure such as sewers and water, and to think differently about the types of housing.
"Modular housing, factory-built housing," Calandara cited as examples. "We're working with our union partners do more on that front. It's going to mean more immigration so we can bring people into the country who can build these homes. It takes a whole government approach from the municipal, provincial and the federal government."
Barrie's success has not been matched everywhere. A number of the 50 municipalities that were given housing targets by the province failed to achieve those last year. For example, Burlington is only at 27 per cent of its target, Oshawa at 67 per cent.
"Why Barrie meets the target and why they do so well is because they stand out in terms of removing obstacles and making it easier for homebuilders to work here," explained Calandra. "That is the number one thing I hear constantly as I move across the province. Where the obstacles have been removed, without sacrificing the important part of safety and security, where municipalities have done that, those are the ones getting the cheques."
Modesty was not in the cards at the news conference as Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall celebrated the successful outcome.
"We are one of the few that exceeded our goal, and yes, I am tooting the horn of the City of Barrie and all the staff that made that happen. But it's also a challenge to every other municipality out there that we need to step up our game. If the City of Barrie can do it, so can they."
Nuttall said in actual fact, Barrie exceeded those 1,716 housing units the premier was speaking about because Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's reporting is behind.
The premier encouraged the city to push on with its housing targets.
"Keep building here, Mr. Mayor, because we're coming back with a larger cheque next year."
Banner image: Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall and Premier Doug Ford dig into cake at a news conference in Barrie on Mar. 15, 2024. (Photo - Barrie 360)
