Ottawa only at 22 per cent of target for housing starts in 2024

A construction worker uses an articulating boom lift to move a piece of construction equipment at the site of an affordable housing project in the Thornecliffe Park region of Ottawa, on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023. (Spencer Colby/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

The City of Ottawa will need to get shovels in the ground to be eligible for provincial housing funding this year, with new housing construction starts only at 22 per cent of the target.

A report for the planning and housing committee shows construction started on 2,774 new homes in the first six months of the year.

Ontario's Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has set a target of 12,583 new dwellings for Ottawa in 2024 to be eligible for funding under the Building Faster Fund. Municipalities will be eligible for funding if they reach 80 per cent or more of their annual housing targets.

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Statistics show construction started on 1,383 new apartment units, 670 row houses, 38 semi-detached homes and 439 single-family homes in the January to June period.

A total of 5,441 dwellings have been approved and building permits have been issued for 6,134 dwellings in Ottawa so far this year.

Staff say construction has been completed on 4,209 new homes in Ottawa so far this year, with the majority being apartment and rowhouses.

The city received $37.5 million from the Ontario government for meeting 80 per cent of its 2023 housing targets. The city broke ground on 10,313 new housing units last year.

A look at Ottawa's progress towards federal and Ontario housing targets in 2024. (Source: City of Ottawa)

Federal Housing Accelerator Fund

The City of Ottawa is 49.1 per cent of the way to meeting the targets under the Federal Housing Accelerator Fund, which focuses on net new dwellings through building permits issued instead of construction starts.

Ottawa has issued 6,134 building permits for new homes in the first six months of the year, including permits for 3,341 multi-using housing units.

The city is eligible for up to $176,323,293 over the three-year Housing Accelerator Fund over three years.