Feds provide $175M in loans for three rental-construction projects
The federal government has announced more than $175 million in loans to developers to build more than 700 combined rental units in London, St. Thomas and Kitchener.
The funding is being provided through the federal Rental Construction Financing Initiative (RCFi).
Located at 391 South Street in London, one project sees the construction of a two-tower building containing 588 purpose-built rental units. The building includes two levels of underground and a four-level above ground parking structure, as well as multiple amenities including a gym, theatre room, lounge, party room and a large outdoor patio area.
The project, which is expected to be completed by the summer of 2024, received $142.8 million through RCFi, and $6.7 million from the City of London.
A second project is Inglewood Modular in St. Thomas. The three-storey building will contain 60 purpose-built rental units. The project received more than $14 million through the RCFi and is expected to be completed by the fall of 2024.
The other project, located at Franklin Street South in Kitchener, will be a six-storey building containing 60 purpose-built rental units. Expected to be completed by the spring of 2025, the project received $18.1 million through RCFi, and over $535,000 in deferred development charges from the City of Kitchener.
Construction of rental homes has not kept pace with the country's growing cities and population, leading to a decline in the existing and aging rental stock for decades. The RCFi is the federal government’s response to this issue.
The initiative provides fully repayable low-interest loans to encourage the construction of more purpose-built rental housing. The government aims to use the loans to encourage the construction of more than 71,000 rental units across the country.