Government Invests in Upgrades & Repairs to York Region’s Affordable Housing Units

August 11, 2009

The Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario today announced that the Richmond Hill Co-op will receive support for repairs and renovations over the next two years. The work will include window replacement and siding.
 
The Richmond Hill Co-op will receive $900,000 - part of a notional allocation of more than $14.4 million to the Regional Municipality of York to repair and retrofit existing local social housing units.
 
The funding was made available as a result of a $1.2 billion joint investment under the amended Canada - Ontario Affordable Housing Program Agreement, which includes funding through Canada's Economic Action Plan and by the Government of Ontario. The federal and provincial governments are contributing equally to this overall investment.
 
Lois Brown, Member of Parliament for Newmarket-Aurora, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and Minister Responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) and Reza Moridi, MPP Richmond Hill, on behalf of the Honourable Jim Watson, Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and Mayor David Barrow, Town of Richmond Hill, on behalf of York Region Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch made the announcement today.
 
"Renovation and retrofit projects, like this one, will improve the quality of life for residents by improving the security and affordability of their homes." said MP Brown. "Investments like these help boost the local economy by putting construction workers and trades people back to work and increasing the demand for local materials."
 
"Our government is committed to energy efficiency." said Reza Moridi, MPP Richmond Hill. "These important upgrades will help save money, protect the environment and improve the quality of life of the residents of Richmond Hill."
 
"Today's funding announcement represents excellent news for our Region," said York Region Chairman and CEO Bill Fisch. "York Region's allocation of close to $14.4 million over the next two years will be put to important and significant use. Investing in social housing properties is an investment in our community."
 
Ontario is moving quickly to invest a total of $704 million to repair eligible social housing across the province. In an effort to get shovels in the ground quickly, projects must be committed by the end of the fiscal years 2010 and 2011.
 
The funding will help improve the quality of life for residents living in social housing communities. Funding will be used to renovate and make energy-saving upgrades to existing social housing as well as to undertake accessibility modifications for the benefit of seniors and persons with disabilities. It will also create jobs and strengthen local economies. To find out more about affordable housing in Ontario, visit www.mah.gov.on.ca.
 
Last fall, the Government of Canada committed more than $1.9 billion over the next five years to improve and build new affordable housing and to help the homeless. Canada's Economic Action Plan builds on this with an additional one-time investment of more than $2 billion over two years in new and existing social housing and lending of up to another $2 billion to municipalities for
housing-related infrastructure.
 
Last month, the Government of Canada and the Province of Ontario announced a series of investments of more than $70 million to fund 36 construction-ready projects throughout the province under the amended Canada-Ontario Affordable Housing Program Agreement.
 
To find out more about how the Government of Canada and CMHC are working to build stronger homes and communities for all Canadians, call CMHC at 1-800-668-2642 or visit www.cmhc.ca/housingactionplan. For more information on Canada's Economic Action Plan, call 1-800-O Canada or visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.