Peterborough Mayor Jeff Leal is launching a new task force to help ramp up housing developments in the city.
Mayor Jeff Leal announced the creation of the Mayor’s Task Force on Housing and Future Growth on Thursday to bring together developers and builders in a forum to look at ways to support the construction of housing and streamline the development application process.
Provincial housing targets require Peterborough to build 4,700 new homes by 2031 — part of Leal opting into Ontario’s new “strong mayor” powers which allow municipal leaders to expedite housing developments and other provincial priorities and allow them to pass housing-related bylaws with the support of just one-third of councillors.
However, new data from the Peterborough and the Kawarthas Home Builders Association shows over the last three months, only seven new housing units began construction in the city. From July through September, the city had 48 single-unit completions, according to the association.
“It’s been a very slow year, especially with the interest rates,” said association executive officer Rebecca Schillemat. “There’s been a lot of issues to get housing built and online.”
The association has estimated the city needs to build 930 housing units each year to meet the target set by the province.]
Leal said the new task force should speed up the building process. The mayor said the city needs a mix of housing types and densities to meet its growth targets and meet the residents’ needs.
“These are individuals who are hands-on. They’re in the field each and every day,” he said. “And I believe that we can profit from their experience, what they’re seeing, to help us in terms of meeting that broad goal.”
Leal said he would not provide names of the individuals on the task force, noting it “isn’t set in stone just yet.”
Schillemat said an organized gathering of all the players necessary for housing developments could be a boon.
“PKHB is really excited for this new task force that Mayor Leal has initiated,” she said. “And we look forward to working more collaboratively with all the departments at city hall to build more homes in the city.”
Once established, the task force would report back to the city in six months with recommendations on how to expedite the application process and get more housing units built.
In a statement, the city said that while it generally does not directly build housing units, the city’s Housing Municipal Services Corporation is exploring opportunities to develop around 700 units over the next 10 years.