Canada to Spend Over $5 Billion on B.C. Infrastructure Over 10 Years, Part of Condo-Conversion Deal

D.C. Premier David Eby announced Thursday that the federal government will invest more than $5 billion in British Columbia's local infrastructure over the next 10 years through the Build Communities Strong Fund. The Canada-British Columbia Partnership on Condo Conversion forms one part of the agreement.

It will use innovative financing tools to convert more than 2,200 vacant condo units into affordable homes. Carney said the government will use the right financial mechanisms to take condos that would otherwise sit empty potentially for another couple of years and convert them into affordable housing.

He added that lowering development charges for multi-unit housing by up to 50 per cent could save builders up to $40,000 per unit.

Governments will also fund infrastructure such as water systems, wastewater systems and local roads. Part of the agreement includes funding over the next 10 years to lower the fees developers pay to municipalities. As of last month, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reported 4,376 completed condos sitting empty in Metro Vancouver, a 76 per cent increase from the same period a year ago.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre spoke to reporters in Vancouver on Sunday afternoon. He described the condo conversion plan as a bailout for developers that should be immediately cancelled. Poilievre said the true innovative financial tool is waiting for the price to lower until someone can afford to purchase or rent the condo.

He said developers decided they wanted to build those condos at a time when we were in a housing bubble but now they're selling those homes at a time when the housing bubble has burst. Poilievre said the prime minister wants to privatize the profit and socialize the losses and that there is no free lunch here.