Alberta Seniors, Community, and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon said the Canadian government’s target for housing starts is ambitious — so much so it might be impossible. While Nixon knows Alberta’s numbers better, he said Housing Minister Sean Fraser would be better able to speak about housing starts in Canada. “What I will say though is Minister Fraser and I are completely aligned on the only way to solve the affordable housing crisis is to be build more homes,” said Nixon at a Wednesday press scrum. “And so our primary focus in Alberta right now is to get to the maximum construction capability that we have.” Housing developers have indicated Alberta can double capacity, and it is on track to accomplish that this year. He said there “will be a point where we reach the point where he just literally can’t build any faster than that.” Since building enough homes might be unfeasible, he said it has looked at repairing current and offline units and different renovation policies that could alleviate construction issues. While it has not reached capacity right now, he remains concerned it might be approaching it soon. Builders warned on Monday Fraser’s goal of achieving 3.9 million new housing starts by 2031 is unattainable. READ MORE: 'NOT A CHANCE:' Builders warn Fraser's target of 3.9 million new homes by 2031 is unrealisticDespite proposed incentives, the construction industry faces significant slowdowns.“We are staring into a pit,” said Residential Construction Council of Ontario President Richard Lyall. Nixon followed up by saying the Alberta government’s focus has been on a few areas. “One has been on the reduction of red tape, attracting more trades to move specifically to Alberta,” he said.“I mean one of the things we worked with Minister [Matt] Jones on is changing Alberta Is Calling to really focus on residential construction trades in the short term, because we know we obviously got to build housing if we want people to move to the province.” He pledged to work with municipalities on permit approvals to ensure Alberta can build more homes. Additionally, he said it would spend money on its affordable housing supply. The Alberta government said on May 1 it was offering moving bonuses of up to $5,000 for skilled trades workers in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec to fill job vacancies in areas such as housing and infrastructure. READ MORE: Alberta is ‘calling’ skilled trades with $5,000 moving bonusesJones said the campaign is being bolstered by a one-time refundable tax credit to seal the deal. To attract more people to Alberta, the government said it would allocate $10 million to them. The ad campaign will cost an additional $2.5 million..This is what the Western Standard is up againstThe Trudeau government is funding lies and propaganda by directly subsidizing the mainstream media. They do this to entrench the powerful Eastern, woke and corrupt interests that dominate the political, social and economic institutions in Canada. Federal authorities are constantly trying to censor us and stop us from publishing the stories that they don’t want you to read. Ottawa may weaponize our taxes and police against us, but we’ve got a powerful ally on our side.You. Free men, and free women. We need you to stand with us and become a member of the Western Standard. Here’s what you will get for your membership:Unlimited access to all articles from the Western Standard, Alberta Report, West Coast Standard, and Saskatchewan Standard, with no paywall. Our daily newsletter delivered to your inbox. .Access to exclusive Member-only WS events.Keep the West’s leading independent media voice strong and free.If you can, please support us with a monthly or annual membership. It takes just a moment to set up, and you will be making a big impact on keeping one the last independent media outlets in Canada free from Ottawa’s corrupting influence.
Alberta Seniors, Community, and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon said the Canadian government’s target for housing starts is ambitious — so much so it might be impossible. While Nixon knows Alberta’s numbers better, he said Housing Minister Sean Fraser would be better able to speak about housing starts in Canada. “What I will say though is Minister Fraser and I are completely aligned on the only way to solve the affordable housing crisis is to be build more homes,” said Nixon at a Wednesday press scrum. “And so our primary focus in Alberta right now is to get to the maximum construction capability that we have.” Housing developers have indicated Alberta can double capacity, and it is on track to accomplish that this year. He said there “will be a point where we reach the point where he just literally can’t build any faster than that.” Since building enough homes might be unfeasible, he said it has looked at repairing current and offline units and different renovation policies that could alleviate construction issues. While it has not reached capacity right now, he remains concerned it might be approaching it soon. Builders warned on Monday Fraser’s goal of achieving 3.9 million new housing starts by 2031 is unattainable. READ MORE: 'NOT A CHANCE:' Builders warn Fraser's target of 3.9 million new homes by 2031 is unrealisticDespite proposed incentives, the construction industry faces significant slowdowns.“We are staring into a pit,” said Residential Construction Council of Ontario President Richard Lyall. Nixon followed up by saying the Alberta government’s focus has been on a few areas. “One has been on the reduction of red tape, attracting more trades to move specifically to Alberta,” he said.“I mean one of the things we worked with Minister [Matt] Jones on is changing Alberta Is Calling to really focus on residential construction trades in the short term, because we know we obviously got to build housing if we want people to move to the province.” He pledged to work with municipalities on permit approvals to ensure Alberta can build more homes. Additionally, he said it would spend money on its affordable housing supply. The Alberta government said on May 1 it was offering moving bonuses of up to $5,000 for skilled trades workers in British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec to fill job vacancies in areas such as housing and infrastructure. READ MORE: Alberta is ‘calling’ skilled trades with $5,000 moving bonusesJones said the campaign is being bolstered by a one-time refundable tax credit to seal the deal. To attract more people to Alberta, the government said it would allocate $10 million to them. The ad campaign will cost an additional $2.5 million..This is what the Western Standard is up againstThe Trudeau government is funding lies and propaganda by directly subsidizing the mainstream media. They do this to entrench the powerful Eastern, woke and corrupt interests that dominate the political, social and economic institutions in Canada. Federal authorities are constantly trying to censor us and stop us from publishing the stories that they don’t want you to read. Ottawa may weaponize our taxes and police against us, but we’ve got a powerful ally on our side.You. Free men, and free women. We need you to stand with us and become a member of the Western Standard. Here’s what you will get for your membership:Unlimited access to all articles from the Western Standard, Alberta Report, West Coast Standard, and Saskatchewan Standard, with no paywall. Our daily newsletter delivered to your inbox. .Access to exclusive Member-only WS events.Keep the West’s leading independent media voice strong and free.If you can, please support us with a monthly or annual membership. It takes just a moment to set up, and you will be making a big impact on keeping one the last independent media outlets in Canada free from Ottawa’s corrupting influence.
