Ford says Hamilton has to “pitch in” on building new homes

Premier Doug Ford was asked about dealing with municipalities that have decided against opening up more land for housing development.

Last November Hamilton city council voted 13-3 to maintain the urban boundary, choosing a housing strategy that focuses on building more homes in already developed areas, instead of developing more farmland.

After a meeting with Toronto Mayor John Tory, Ford said the burden of building new homes can’t just fall on Ontario’s capital. “Folks out in Ottawa and Hamilton and Durham, we all have to work together,” Ford said.

Ford was asked about a new report from the Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation (CMHC) that says Canada needs to add 3.5 million new homes by 2030 to achieve housing affordability.

Right now CMHC says the country is on track to build about 2.3 million by 2030. Ford says his government will work to speed up the process of building new homes.

That decision was met with criticism from local conservative MP Donna Skelly and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark.

Ford said today he intends to sit down and work with Hamilton and other municipalities on housing.

Hamilton centre MPP Andrea Horwath says ford should respect city council’s decision on the boundary, and not try to force expansion.

Horwath says expanding the boundary means expanding infrastructure and the taxpayer will have to cover that cost. Horwath thinks council made the right decision.

Hamilton’s population is expected to grow to 820,000 people by 2051. That’s an increase of nearly a quarter of a million people.