Canada’s communities are experiencing record population growth — so how do we ensure they remain great places to live for all residents?
Infrastructure is essential to the well-being of all Canadians. Clean water, wastewater, local roads, public transit and community amenities are all vital for our communities to thrive.
Canada is experiencing historic population growth. And with 1.25 million new residents in the last year, we are encountering a dual challenge: building both enough housing to restore affordability while ensuring local infrastructure is sufficient to support a good quality of life for all.
To ensure that Canada’s growth is successful, FCM is urging the federal government to properly fund the crucial next generation of infrastructure that Canadians will rely on. FCM is requesting Ottawa to convene all orders of government to come together and develop a Municipal Growth Framework. With a new, diverse, predictable and more equitable way to fund local governments, municipalities will be better positioned to give Canadians the quality of life they expect and deserve.
Progress on a federal infrastructure plan is at standstill, which is concerning in a context of rapid growth. At the same time, no new infrastructure programs are available today, even though the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program is closed, and the Permanent Public Transit Fund will not start before 2026. Moreover, the Canada Community-Building Fund which allows municipalities to decide how best to allocate their funding and provides the flexibility to make strategic investments in a wide range of project categories is under re-negotiation between the federal government and signatories.
A Municipal Growth Framework can act as a key to unlock communities’ full potential and address our most pressing national challenges, including infrastructure, housing and homelessness, climate change and public safety.
FCM launched an urgent call for the federal government to invest in critical infrastructure for Canadian communities as the country faces historic crises in housing, affordability, homelessness and climate change.
Join Gracen Chungath, Senior Vice President of Destination Development at Destination Canada, as she discusses the real value of tourism to Canada and its communities.
The president of FCM and Mayor of Gore Scott Pearce, and the Chair of FCM’s Big City Mayors’ Caucus and Mayor of Halifax Mike Savage, issued the following statement ahead of the federal government’s anticipated Fall Economic Update.
