Feds release details of Public Lands for Homes Plan
The federal government has released details of its plans to build more affordable homes on public lands.
Announced as part of the 2024 budget, Canada's Housing Plan lays out a strategy to unlock 3.87 million new homes across the country by 2031, including 250,000 homes through a new Public Lands for Homes Plan.
The public lands plan aims to review the federal government's entire portfolio of federally owned land and properties to rapidly identify sites where new homes can be built. It will identify and build housing on underused public lands, and acquire new lands.
It also plans to lease public lands as opposed to selling them, to launch a new public land bank and mapping tool to help homebuilders more easily identify and navigate public lands, and introduce legislation to facilitate the acquisition and use of public lands for homes, in partnership with other orders of government.
"We have a lot of public land in Canada that's underused or vacant,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “With Budget 2024, we're unlocking this land for construction and building thousands of new homes."
The plan also calls for better use of existing land to increase the housing stock. For example, Canada Post has more than 1,700 post offices in over 1,700 communities across the country. Many of these sites often house one-storey Canada Post buildings, which could be converted into new homes.
National Defence owns property in every province and territory, and these properties are often underutilized. The government says it will redevelop National Defence properties that are suitable for military and civilian use and divest surplus properties that are not required for National Defence operations but have the potential for housing.
It also plans to convert underused federal offices into homes. Half of federally owned office buildings are either underused or entirely vacant. It intends to convert these offices into homes – especially in urban areas – and prioritize student housing and affordable housing.
"Public lands can help play a major role in building more homes faster and making housing more affordable,” said Public Services and Procurement Minister Jean-Yves Duclos. “With Budget 2024, we are accelerating the process of converting surplus federal properties into housing and enabling the construction of additional housing units."
In Budget 2024, the Government of Canada announced it would unlock five federal properties that will be leased to housing providers to build over 800 new homes. These include plans to build nearly 500 homes in Ottawa and more than 100 in Toronto.
The federal government also intends to launch a Public Lands Action Council this spring to spur collaboration and equip players in the public and private sectors with the tools they need to build homes on public lands.
The Council will bring together key stakeholders to identify specific lands across Canada with high potential for housing and take concerted action to accelerate construction on these lands. This group will also help shape the federal government's approach to building homes on public lands.