Langley City Mayor Nathan Pachal released an video invitation to the federal minister of housing infrastructure and communities Sean Fraser to meet in Ottawa for a discussion on addressing the community’s housing needs.
It follows news that both Langley City and the Township of Langley would not receive money from the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) because the $4 billion program to encourage residential construction has depleted all its money.
In what a City statement described as an “encouraging, “friendly,” “warm and inviting” video Pachal tells Fraser that “while we were disappointed that we didn’t receive housing accelerator funding, we are heading to Ottawa in a few weeks, and we really want to talk to you to discuss what’s possible to build more affordable housing faster in Langley City. “
Pachal describes Langley City as a fast-growing community, with “one of the highest densities already within Metro Vancouver.”
The video, released Monday, March 25, shows Pachal walking by the Townhouse complex where he lives, telling the minister “as you can see there’s more townhouses, for families that are going to be moving to our community, being built right here.”
“I believe it is important that all levels of government work together to implement effective solutions,” Pachal said.
“I hope Minister Sean Fraser accepts my invitation to meet in Ottawa to discuss how we can build more affordable homes faster in Langley City.”
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The Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) had a stated aim of encouraging more home building, faster, and often with greater density than previously allowed.
Administered by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), it received more than 500 applications, and demand for the program “significantly exceeded the available budget,” a CMHC spokesperson said s.
In the Lower Mainland, Vancouver and Surrey made successful applications, but Langley City and Langley Township’s applications were not accepted, at least not before the program ran out of cash.
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