Record-high wait-lists, record-high building permits: a look at Thunder Bay's housing goals
CBC
The City of Thunder Bay issued a record-high number of building permits in 2024, paving the road for a busy year of construction as it works toward ambitious housing targets.
Last February, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited the northwestern Ontario city to announce Thunder Bay would be receiving $20.7 million through the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF).
That money is intended to fast-track the development of more than 600 new housing units, to reach a total of 1,691 new homes by February 2027.
"It's about finding ways to increase the number of homes that are being built here in Thunder Bay, so either through grant programs and incentives or through zoning changes — opening up new lands, new infrastructure to allow for more housing to be developed," explained Summer Stevenson, the city's project manager for the Housing Accelerator program.
Since then, the city has launched four new grant programs aimed at incentivizing development. This year, it's also planning three new infrastructure projects that will unlock more land.
In all, 330 building permits were issued by the city in 2024 – a jump from 310 the previous year. If all of the projects that have received funding through the HAF move forward, that number will be close to 400 for 2025, Stevenson said.
"We're excited to start getting these projects through, so hopefully, we see lots of construction next season," she said.
Like the rest of the country, Thunder Bay has been hit hard by the housing crisis. At least 550 people are estimated to be experiencing homelessness in the city, about 78 per cent of which are Indigenous.
Meanwhile, the wait-list to get into social housing in the Thunder Bay district is at a five-year high at just under 1,400 people, according to members of the Thunder Bay District Social Services Administration Board (TBDSSAB).
As the city eyes ambitious targets for new housing starts, community partners are working together to support a range of units to meet people's needs.
The city's HAF grants are available for homeowners, developers and not-for-profit organizations. So far, homeowners have been applying for grants the most, to build backyard homes and basement suites – adding what Stevenson calls soft density in the community.
"There are a lot of folks in the community who are excited about this and want to contribute to the solution when it comes to our housing crisis," she said.
"It's awesome to see and have these conversations with everybody in our community about what can we do here in Thunder Bay to get more homes built and what does that mean for people here in Thunder Bay."
Meanwhile, TBDSSAB is looking to add capacity at all levels of the housing continuum. In November, it provided funding for 40 additional emergency shelter spaces. Last week, it announced more than $8.3 million in provincial funding to support 66 transitional housing units in the city. The money comes from the Homelessness Prevention Program.
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