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ONTARIO 💵 Ontario Investing $400 Million in Roads and Bridges to Enable More Homes

Wednesday, 21 August 2024 02:13.PM

- Provincial funding will help municipalities build and repair local infrastructure -

Beginning tomorrow, August 21, the Ontario government will be accepting applications for funding under the $400 million Housing-Enabling Core Servicing stream of the $1 billion Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program to build, maintain, and repair core assets such as municipal roads, bridges and culverts that will support the construction of new homes. Of the $400 million, the government is allocating another $120 million to projects in small, rural and northern municipalities that do not have housing targets to better support the unique needs of these growing communities.

“Our government is working with our municipal partners to support their infrastructure needs and get more homes built across the province,” said Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure. “This investment, in addition to the $970 million we are investing in water infrastructure through the first intake of the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund, will help unlock more housing opportunities beyond 511,000 homes, bringing us another step forward in our historic partnership with municipalities to build the infrastructure and homes that our communities need to grow and prosper.”

Municipalities will be able to submit applications for the Housing-Enabling Core Servicing stream starting tomorrow. Eligible projects include any road and bridge assets that enable housing infrastructure and promote growth in communities. These projects must be a net new, rehabilitation, repair, reconstruction or replacement project. More information about the program and how to apply is available at ontario.ca/housinginfrastructure.

The remaining funding under the Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program will help municipalities target other key infrastructure priorities, including maintaining the health and safety of local water and wastewater systems. More information about this funding, including eligibility and application intake details, will be announced later this year.

“We are ensuring that, even though high interest rates and global uncertainty have impacted housing starts, we are laying the groundwork for a long-term building boom as economic circumstances improve,” said Paul Calandra, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. “We will continue to do our part to give municipalities the tools they need to build more homes faster. Whether it’s helping communities maintain roads and bridges or upgrade water and wastewater systems, our government is focused on making historic investments in infrastructure to help get shovels in the ground for new homes in Ontario.”

Earlier this month, Ontario also announced the launch of a second intake of applications under the $1.2-billion Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund. Combined, the Municipal Housing Infrastructure Program and the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund are providing municipalities with more than $1.9 billion in provincial funding for housing- and community-enabling infrastructure, as part of the province’s capital plan of over $190 billion to build critical infrastructure and support growing communities.

Quick Facts

• Under the first intake of the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund, the government is investing $970 million in 54 water infrastructure projects that will enable over 500,000 new housing units in 60 municipalities across the province.
• Applications for the second intake of funding for the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund close on November 1. Details about the second application intake and eligibility can be found at ontario.ca/watersystemsfund.
• Municipalities with assigned housing targets are receiving a total of $262 million from the Building Faster Fund for 2023 performance against housing targets.
• Ontario is also providing municipalities improved and flexible borrowing terms for housing-enabling water projects under Infrastructure Ontario’s loan program. This new lending stream would build on the valued financing Infrastructure Ontario already provides to many municipal partners and would provide them with options for deferred interest payments until projects are substantially complete, longer loan terms, more flexible repayment terms, and lower administration costs.

"Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is helping municipal partners build and repair local roads and bridges that will connect residents to housing, jobs and other opportunities for generations to come. This investment is another step forward in our plan to build at least 1.5 million homes across the province and ensure communities have the critical infrastructure they need to grow."
- Prabmeet Sarkaria, Minister of Transportation

SOURCE: Ontario Ministry of Infrastructure

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