Halifax’s new affordable housing plan aims to continue supporting non-profit organizations, but officials acknowledge it’s not a complete solution to the city’s high housing costs. The proposed strategy was presented to the community planning and economic development council committee recently.
The plan includes maintaining the city’s current affordable housing grant programs, waiving permit fees, and offering tax relief for non-profit housing entities once federal funding for staff support ends. To implement this, two new staff positions are needed, with an estimated annual cost of around $242,950 each over the next ten years.
Coun. Becky Kent emphasized the importance of independent agencies and services in creating housing space with city support, calling it a good model to build upon. The existing programs, along with federal funds from the Rapid Housing Initiative, have helped develop 1,400 non-market or deeply affordable housing units from 2021 to December 2025.
The new strategy is the final component of Halifax’s obligations under the Housing Accelerator Fund, which has brought $80 million in federal funding since 2023 for various housing initiatives. Aaron Murnaghan, overseeing the HAF program, noted that Halifax is on track to surpass its goal of 2,600 additional housing starts by October, totaling over 15,460 units, including more than 333 affordable units.
While progress is being made, challenges like construction costs and material availability are impacting completion timelines. Murnaghan pointed out the unique geographical challenges in Halifax, such as excavation and blasting costs, contributing to longer development periods.
Despite some councillors expressing disappointment that the strategy doesn’t have more tools to address overall market affordability issues, staff remain committed to advocating for changes like a vacant land tax, waiver of development charges for affordable housing, and adjustments to the deed transfer tax. In the long term, they are considering integrating affordable housing into new or renovated municipal facilities.
The strategy is pending final approval by the regional council and staff are open to exploring other models in the future, such as establishing a municipal housing corporation or formal partnerships with non-profit groups, though these options may come with higher costs and require legislative adjustments.
