The Region of Peel received more than $276 million in funding for affordable housing from the federal and provincial governments on August 7.

Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and the minister responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, made the announcement alongside regional chair Nando Iannicca and Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria, Member of Provincial Parliament for Brampton-South.

The money, which is being provided through the National Housing Co-Investment Fund, will be used to start work on as many as 2,240 affordable rental units and shelter beds through 2028. It is the largest individual housing investment ever made by the Government of Canada in the Region of Peel. 

"These significant investments enable the Region of Peel to add thousands of new affordable rental housing units as well as shelter beds for residents who are most in need,” said Iannicca. “The magnitude of Peel's affordable housing shortage is being heightened by the effects of the pandemic as more individuals and families are finding themselves in urgent need of affordable housing. This demands that all levels of government work together, and we'll continue to explore innovative partnerships with both the federal and provincial governments to fulfill our plan for creating more affordable housing in Peel."

The money comes after 30 years of lobbying from the region. Local organizations crated The Fair Share for Peel Task Force in the 1990s. The group’s purpose is to lobby the provincial and federal governments for a fair share of social service funding as Peel’s rapid growth outstripped services for the region’s most vulnerable people.

Peel has had one of the highest growth rates in the Greater Toronto Area over the past 20 years. That trend which expected to continue.

About 17,000 Peel households live in community housing, making up only 15 percent of all renters in Peel; the vacancy rate for market rental housing in Peel remains low at 1.2 percent.