Prince George and the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George (RDFFG) are getting provincial funding to report on local housing needs.
The province is investing nearly $1 million to help another 26 communities assess and report on local housing needs, so governments can ensure they deliver homes for people in B.C. while recognizing the uniqueness of each community.
Prince George will receive $50,000 for this study while the RDFFG will receive $100,000, which accounts for all seven electoral areas.
"Local governments and First Nations play a critical role in addressing the housing crisis, and the impacts of COVID-19 on people and communities have reinforced just how important it is to support them in their efforts," said B.C. Municipal Affairs Minister Josie Osborne in a news release today (Jan. 25).
"This funding will help communities determine exactly what kind of housing people need and will support healthy and resilient communities across B.C. well into the future."
Funding recipients are from the third intake of the Housing Needs Report Program, administered by the Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM).
In 2018, the province committed $5 million over three years (2019-21) to help local governments collect and analyze housing-related data from their communities.
While First Nations have also been included in regional district housing needs reports, in 2020, the Province expanded program eligibility to B.C.'s eight Treaty First Nations.
Nisga'a Lisims Government and Tsawwassen First Nation are two of the successful applicants from the third intake and will receive funding to develop their own housing needs reports.
Since the Housing Needs Report program started, a total of 138 local governments and two Treaty First Nations in B.C. have received funding to help them assess their communities' housing needs. Under the housing needs report legislation, all local governments must produce their first housing needs report by April 2022 and every five years after that.
"The level of engagement by B.C.'s local governments with this program demonstrates the extent of housing crisis across the province," said Brian Frenkel, president, UBCM in a news release.
"Strengthening local housing needs data will assist the identification of local priorities and improve the design of provincial funding programs. UBCM is pleased to administer this program on behalf of the province."
