$203M in funding announced for affordable Alberta housing
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The outlay is from the Affordable Housing Partnership Program, a 10-year program between the two governments that sees them split costs equally.
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'This is one area where we continue to see pretty significant partnership between the province of Alberta and the federal government and a strong dedication by both governments to continue to invest in housing to make sure that Canada can continue to move forward, particularly in places like Alberta, where we see unprecedented growth,' said Assisted Living and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon in announcing the spending.
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Edmonton-Centre MP and Prairies Economic Development Minister Eleanor Olszewski said the joint spending will help address the housing crisis.
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'It shows you that when governments choose to lead and to work together, we can do really big things,' she said.
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More than $41 million of the money announced Friday is slated to be distributed across five Edmonton-area developments.
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Nearly half of that, or $20 million, is going Civida to build mixed-use, mixed-income affordable housing.
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The Brentwood Family Housing Society is slated to receive $6.69 million to build affordable housing for families, with a 12621665 Canada Association also to get $6 million for the same cause.
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The Mustard Seed Foundation is set to receive $4.67 million to build supportive housing.
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And, $4.05 million is to be devoted for Williams Hall at the former downtown YMCA site to build mixed-use affordable housing with a focus on supporting young adults, students, and individuals facing rental barriers.
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'We knew that the spirit of this new vision would involve focusing on young adult Albertans and providing them a space where they can start their adult lives on the right foot,' said Ivan Beljan, whose company is leading the development of the Williams Hall site.
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Friday's announcement sets aside just over $117 million for nine grant recipients in Calgary.
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A further $44.6 million is also set aside for seven other recipients across Alberta, including projects in St. Albert, Sherwood Park, Banff, Jasper, Okotoks, Strathmore, and Canmore.
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Separate land transfers in Olds and Fort Saskatchewan were also announced to aid in construction of affordable housing.
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Global News
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Story continues below advertisement The company calls itself the largest provider of community and affordable housing in northern Alberta. 'Funded by the Government of Canada, Government of Alberta, and the City of Edmonton, Kaskitêw Asiskî will provide 132 high-quality homes to southwest Edmonton,' Civida said in a statement to Global News. According to Civida, the development will be a mix of one- to four-bedroom affordable housing and other units rented out at the current market rate. It will have two four-storey buildings containing 92 apartments, with an underground parkade, and 40 three- and four-bedroom townhomes with attached garages. The breakdown is 80 affordable housing suites, 20 community housing suites and 32 market rental suites. It will also have an on-site daycare and shared activity space with community kitchen. 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Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Five years ago at a city hall public hearing, residents expressed concerns over safety, congestion and the project being set about 30 metres away from the elementary school. 'When the project was rezoned in January of 2020, we had over a hundred people speak to council about the concerns: safety for our children, traffic and the parking, the drop-off zone and just the scope of the project of adding 400 to 500 people on a fairly small site.' The same concerns from five years ago continue to exist today, Olsen said. He still believes the project is too large and too close to the school. He also worries there will not be enough parking on the site, resulting in more street congestion surrounding the development. 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