Toronto, ON | Sept. 16, 2025 – WoodGreen Community Services welcomes the ambitious launch of Build Canada Homes (BCH) and the initial $13 billion investment in affordable housing. As one of the largest affordable housing developers in Toronto, we are encouraged to see that BCH will offer flexible financial incentives, approve large portfolio projects, and leverage public lands for affordable housing.
We would also like to congratulate Ana Bailão, on her new role as CEO of BCH. We look forward to working together to deliver more affordable and supportive housing at scale through Build Canada Homes.
WoodGreen supports BCH objectives and commitments to:
- Develop large portfolio projects including on public land and prioritize pre-fabricated factory-built housing and other innovative approaches. WoodGreen brings direct, hands-on experience in building and operating modular, prefabricated and mass timber sites. We look forward to further details on how we can partner with BCH to deliver more housing at scale.
- Preserve affordability and protect existing affordable rental housing stock through launching the Canada Rental Protection Fund under Build Canada Homes. Acquisition and renewal are critical to preserve affordability and ensure long-term sustainability.
- Deploy $1 billion to build transitional and supportive housing. Supportive housing is crucial for vulnerable populations and should remain as a priority for BCH. WoodGreen is prepared to deliver housing solutions at the nexus of housing and health care.
We support the stated objectives above and look forward to more detail later this fall. Canada needs more mixed-income housing to be financed, developed, and preserved. BCH’s interest in mixed-income developments is encouraging and will help deliver workforce housing across the country.
We expect BCH to build off the successes of Canada Mortgage Housing Corporation (CMHC) programs such as Mortgage Loan Insurance (MLI) Select, Apartment Construction Loan Program, and the Affordable Housing Fund (AHF). Ideally, existing CMHC programs will continue to be funded in the short-term at minimum to ensure current projects are not stalled, delayed or cancelled.
In particular, Affordable Housing Fund continuity will preserve the essential mix of grants and low-cost financing that allows non-profits like WoodGreen to build viable housing for vulnerable populations and partner with private developers in mixed income housing projects. It will also enable BCH to review current and past applications for funding.
WoodGreen looks forward to continuing and advancing work with BCH and the Government of Canada to build more affordable homes in Toronto and across Canada.
ABOUT WOODGREEN COMMUNITY SERVICES (woodgreen.org): WoodGreen is one of the largest social service agencies in Toronto, serving more than 40,000 people each year. We offer over 75 programs and services tackling the social determinants that affect the health and well-being of individuals in our community.
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For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact: Jon Reed, Senior Communications Manager; [email protected];.