Alberta’s housing critic says a new report card outlining the provincial government’s lack of effective action to improve the housing situation is alarming, but not surprising.
A group of 15 housing policy experts came together back in 2023 to create the Task Force for Housing and Climate with the goal of offering “practical, actionable advice to all orders of government.” The task force released its first report last year with 140 policy actions that it believes could add millions of affordable, low carbon and climate resilient homes to the Canadian market by 2030.
This latest report card, released earlier this week, evaluates how the provinces and federal government have addressed the following top five concerns from that first report up to the end of 2024:
1. Legalize density;
2. Implement better building codes;
3. Invest in factory-built housing;
4. Avoid high-risk areas; and
5. Fill in market gaps.
Alberta came in dead last among all the provinces with an unflattering D+ grade overall.
The report is urging the Alberta government to look to Calgary and Edmonton for guidance after those two cities enacted several helpful policy reforms, including zoning and approval processes. The province is also being encouraged to prioritize hazard mapping to ensure homes aren’t being built in areas prone to flooding and wildfires.
“The policy solutions exist,” the report card concludes. “What we need is the political will, especially at the provincial level, to enact them.”
Janis Irwin, the Official Opposition’s Shadow Minister for Housing, says she can’t help but agree that the UCP government has a long-standing poor track record when it comes to housing.
A lack of investment in affordable and social housing, and building better homes that can withstand an increasing amount of climate-related natural disasters are Irwin’s biggest concerns stemming from this report card. She says it’s hard to have any faith that this government will take meaningful action when it continually refuses to listen to expert advice.
“There’s so much more that can be done and they’re refusing,” Irwin says. “We need to be building smarter and better, and this is a UCP government that is being completely ideological. Instead of adapting to the world we find ourselves in, they’re putting their heads in the sand and refusing to act.”
Irwin adds that the province’s unwillingness to collaborate with all orders of government to effectively address the housing crisis sends a strong message that it does not support the average working Albertan.
The outlook was less than ideal for other provinces, as well. Quebec, Prince Edward Island and British Columbia scored the highest, each with an overall C+ for their efforts. High development fees, slow approvals and uneven policy reform are continuing to hinder progress, according to the report card.
Meanwhile, the federal government came out on top with a B grade. Efforts to increase factory-built housing were specifically praised. However, more work is needed to enhance transparency in certain housing programs, like the Housing Accelerator. The government is also being encouraged to set up a nationwide hazard map as a reference for future builds.
The full 56-page report card is available at moreandbetterhousing.ca.
