The City of Duncan is excited to announce that it has reached an agreement with the Government of Canada through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to accelerate the delivery 313 housing units in Duncan over the next three years.

Through this agreement and the program funding, the City will eliminate barriers to housing development, create certainty in the development approvals process, and incentivize new investments in housing. This includes high density housing, missing middle housing, and affordable and specialized housing for families and individuals.

As part of its agreement, the City will be implementing a variety of housing initiatives in the coming months to support the objectives of the program, including zoning, parking, and design guideline updates, streamlining the development application process, and incentivizing the creation of affordable housing. There will likely be specific Big Conversations pages for initiatives that include a public engagement element.

“The funding will help the City complete housing initiatives and invest in infrastructure needed to support housing development and the community,” said Mayor Michelle Staples. “We look forward to helping address the growing need for housing by supporting a greater choice of housing options.”

While Council will need to make decisions on use of the funding, the grant money can be used for any of the following:

Investments in housing accelerator fund action plans:

• any initiative included in the proponent’s housing action plan and approved by CMHC

Investments in affordable housing:

• construction of affordable housing
• repair or modernization of affordable housing
• land or building acquisition for affordable housing

Investments in housing-related Infrastructure:

• drinking water infrastructure that supports housing
• wastewater infrastructure that supports housing
• solid waste management that supports housing
• public transit that supports housing
• community energy systems that support housing
• disaster mitigation that supports housing
• brownfield redevelopment that supports housing
• broadband and connectivity that supports housing
• capacity building that supports housing
• site preparation for housing developments

Investments in community-related infrastructure that supports housing:

• local roads and bridges
• sidewalks, lighting, bicycle lanes
• firehalls
• landscaping and green space