A former Canada Post office in Port Moody could be used to deliver affordable housing.
The .4-acre property at 45 Mary St. has been added to a list of 56 federally-owned sites across Canada that comprise the public land bank.
All of the properties have been “identified as being able to support housing,” according to a news release from Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), adding its plan to lease the sites to builders rather than sell them will ensure homes will be affordable.
“We are leading a Team Canada effort to unlock public lands for housing at a pace and scale not seen in generations,” said Jean-Yves Duclos, the Minister of Public Services and Procurement.
“Available, accessible and affordable housing options are scarce and too many people do not have a safe place to call home.”
The move has been a long time coming, said Bonita Zarrillo, the NDP MP for Port Moody—Coquitlam, who recently criticized the federal government of dragging its feet on a commitment made in last April’s budget to identify potential public properties that would be made available for affordable housing.
“I’m glad to see that the federal government is finally moving forward on opening up 45 Mary St.,” Zarillo said in a statement.
“People in Port Moody needed housing they could truly afford yesterday.”
Ottawa needs to make good on plan to build affordable housing in Port Moody: MP https://t.co/zW2Mb622Kn
— Tri-City News (@TriCityNews) August 15, 2024
An assessment of Port Moody’s housing needs completed by CitySpaces Consulting in 2021 determined the city requires more diversity in its available and planned housing stock to better accommodate families, single people, low income earners, immigrants and people with disabilities.
But actually building affordable homes at 45 Mary St. Is likely still a ways off.
In its release, PSPC said it will first collect feedback about the properties listed in the public land bank as well as the types of housing solutions that are needed before soliciting partners to get those solutions built.
According to the ministry, the federal government hopes to get 250,000 new affordable homes built by 2031 under its public lands for homes plan.
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