Helping build more homes, faster in Sussex

Sussex will receive more than $3.2 million for initiatives such as updating infrastructure planning to align with future growth, developing non-profit partnerships, providing permit-ready parcels of vacant land, amending zoning bylaws to allow more homes in neighbourhoods, promoting the development of alternative housing types like modular and prefabricated, and implementing flood mitigation strategies.

The Housing Accelerator Fund is helping cut red tape and fast track at least 100,000 permitted new homes over the first three years, which cities and regions estimate will lead to the creation of more than 750,000 permitted new homes for people in towns, cities, and Indigenous communities across Canada over the next decade. It asks for innovative action plans from local governments, and once approved, provides upfront funding to ensure the timely building of new homes, as well as additional funds upon delivering results. Local governments are encouraged to think big and be bold in their approaches, which could include accelerating project timelines, allowing increased housing density, and encouraging affordable housing units.

The Government of Canada is making life more affordable for Canadians – and housing is key to our work. We will continue to work with provincial, territorial, and municipal governments, as well as Indigenous partners, to keep building more homes for Canadians, faster.

“This direct funding from CMHC will help rural towns like Sussex who are on the frontlines of the housing crisis and will assist with building of new homes to meet Sussex’s needs,” said Mayor Thorne. “In Sussex this means we need to ensure we are innovative and are building the mix of housing, including the missing middle in our neighbourhoods that have been identified through the Town’s recent stakeholder meetings and our Housing Needs Assessment.  The timing is perfect as we are currently developing our new Municipal Plan and Zoning Bylaws for Sussex. We appreciate the federal government for their confidence in Sussex’s housing plan and their commitment to ensuring that everyone who wants to call Sussex home can do so.”

Sussex’s is excited to work with our funding partners on addressing affordable housing, and meaningful work initiatives to address an affordable residential dwelling units that are rented at 80% or less of the Median Market Rent (MMR), as defined by the latest Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) annual Rental Market Report. An affordable unit may also include a dwelling unit that is otherwise deemed affordable through another provincial or CMHC program or no more than 30% of income.

Sussex’s funding dollars will get spread over a variety of different funding areas identified agreement initiative requirements, funding to address infrastructure support, funding to address incentivization, funding for partnership programs with other levels of government as well as not-for-profit entities. The Sussex funding will support six (6) Sussex Initiatives under the Sussex Housing Action Plan, including:

Sussex targets with this program and agreement to a Housing Supply Growth Target of 104 permitted housing units over the next three years. In addition, the Sussex targets:

• 13 missing middle housing units
• 155 other multi-unit housing units
• 6.21 percent of the Housing Supply Growth Target are affordable units.

The Sussex Housing Needs Assessment analyzed our community growth potential and details a Sussex assessment of our future housing needs.

For more information contact Scott M. Hatcher, P. Eng., Chief Administrative Officer for the town of Sussex at

(506) 432-4540.