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This article was published 26/10/2020 (238 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
OTTAWA — Winnipeg will receive $12.5 million in federal funding for fast-tracked affordable housing, the Free Press has learned.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will make the announcement Tuesday, according to a federal source. The announcement will involve other cities as well.
It’s part of a COVID-19 modification to the national housing strategy, aimed at creating 3,000 affordable housing units for vulnerable groups before next spring.
Dubbed the Rapid Housing Initiative, the $1-billion fund allows cities, provinces and Indigenous groups and non-profit organizations to buy up existing, unused buildings and convert them into apartments. The fund, announced a month ago, can also be used to purchase and install modular housing.
Among the groups that could receive such funding are women escaping domestic violence, people living with addictions, and veterans at risk of ending up on the street.
Most of the fund is earmarked to be spent by March 2021, though it can continue to be tapped into 2022. The measure responds to calls from city mayors and housing advocates to fast-track affordable housing during the pandemic.
dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca