2023-12-14 06:10:45
Ottawa came out with mothballs as a post-war measure to tackle the housing crisis and I say: well done.
Published at 1:10 a.m. Updated at 5:00 a.m.
This is exactly the mentality to adopt right now. See the housing shortage as an enemy to be defeated, and use all available ammunition to confront it.
Even if they date from the 40s.
The federal government, therefore, intends to make available to builders a “catalogue” of turnkey house and multi-residential building plans. This measure is inspired by a program launched at the end of the Second World War, which made it possible to erect tens of thousands of homes to house veterans.
We still see these small bungalows proudly erected in several cities, including in Montreal, near the Olympic Stadium.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser at a press conference Tuesday in Ottawa with an old “catalogue” of post-war houses
The new federal plan could look like a gimmickespecially if we look at the footage of Housing Minister Sean Fraser holding up an old catalog in front of the cameras to announce the project earlier this week.
But this is far from being an insignificant achievement, in my opinion.
Standardizing construction methods will be a very concrete way to accelerate construction starts – and also, a crucial factor, access to federal funds for many builders.
We must recognize the merit of Justin Trudeau’s government: it has fully opened the floodgates to finance housing in recent years. Its National Housing Strategy totals $82 billion. There are low-interest loans to finance construction, subsidies for affordable housing and renovation assistance.
In reality, there is more demand than money available. Private developers, NPOs and all the cooperatives in the country are fighting to obtain federal funds. Delays are getting longer for the analysis of files at the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
To qualify for CMHC programs, builders of all types must meet several very strict criteria, including energy efficiency.
This is where the federal plan becomes doubly interesting. The “catalogue” will only contain building plans “pre-approved” by CMHC. Those who use them will be able to qualify much more quickly for various funding programs, Minister Sean Fraser explained to me in an interview.
It will therefore be two long and tedious steps which will be skipped in one fell swoop: that of designing architectural plans at a high price (they will already be provided), and that of navigating the meanders of the CMHC to qualify for financial help.
Ottawa’s objective is for the provinces and cities to in turn facilitate the issuance of building permits for homes that will come from the “catalogue”, which would further reduce the delays for starting construction sites.
Less bureaucracy and more housing: excellent, at least on paper.
So what will the federally “pre-approved” plans look like?
There will be single-family homes, but also – and above all – “plexes” and multi-unit buildings. Without getting too far ahead, Sean Fraser tells me that the plans could go up to 12 floors, and that they will very much aim for “densification”. This is what is needed.
IMAGE PROVIDED BY CMHC
The plan of a small bungalow, taken from a 1954 CMHC catalog
Ottawa will conduct consultations in early 2024, and plans to arrive with a catalog of some pre-approved models later in the year (the sooner the better).
Modular, prefabricated constructions could constitute an important part of the revival of housing starts, according to Ottawa.
It’s far from being a bad idea.
There is a way to do something beautiful, not too expensive and quickly, with the “prefab”. I told you a few months ago about a project of 19 studios for ex-homeless people, built in just 18 months in the Mercier district of Montreal with modular blocks built in a factory. A real success1.
Standardization is also the method brilliantly used by UTILE, an organization that creates hundreds of student housing throughout Quebec. Its buildings are constructed of concrete, but the group reuses the same designs (and the same suppliers) to make the kitchens and other components inside its apartments. This allows it to move faster and achieve economies of scale2.
Quebec is also pointing in this direction.
The Société d’habitation du Québec (SHQ), the government’s real estate arm, has recently focused on modular. It released a budget of $5 million to build 18 modular housing units in Gaspésie and Charlevoix, with a view to housing health care workers3.
The first homes were delivered in a total of 10 months, I was confirmed at the SHQ. It’s very fast.
The plans of Ottawa and Quebec will have to be scrutinized, among other things to ensure that there will be a minimum of architectural quality in this great standardization effort.
We must nevertheless welcome these concrete measures to tackle the crisis. There is a shortage of more than 3.5 million housing units to meet basic demand in the country by 2030 according to CMHC, probably more, and every action counts to catch up.
A war effort is required, nothing less.
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