Backgrounder
Build Canada Homes is Canada’s new federal agency with a mandate to scale the supply of affordable housing. By leveraging public land, flexible financial tools and modern methods of construction, the agency is catalyzing a more productive and innovative homebuilding industry.
Build Canada Homes
- Build Canada Homes is Canada’s new federal agency with a mandate to scale the supply of affordable housing. By leveraging public land, flexible financial tools and modern methods of construction, the agency is catalyzing a more productive and innovative homebuilding industry.
- By combining access to federal lands, development expertise and flexible financial tools under one roof, Build Canada Homes will make it simpler and faster to get big projects off the ground.
- Build Canada Homes will partner across the housing ecosystem to drive the development of affordable housing, supporting a mix of income needs as part of a national effort to increase housing construction, restore affordability, and reduce homelessness.
- As part of the federal government’s bold response to Canada’s housing crisis, Canada Lands Company is transferring under the newly launched Build Canada Homes. This marks a strategic shift in how federal lands and development expertise are mobilized to accelerate affordable housing delivery across the country.
- Build Canada Homes will develop parcels at six Canada Lands Company sites in Dartmouth, Longueuil, Ottawa, Toronto, Winnipeg, and Edmonton. These sites will prioritize innovative, modern methods of construction to build up to 4,000 homes, quickly, affordably, and sustainably.
1495 Heron Road
- The federal government, through Build Canada Homes, has prioritized the property located at 1495 Heron Road for a Direct Build approach using modern methods of construction to help accelerate affordable housing delivery in Ottawa, Ontario.
- Build Canada Homes will be building approximately 1,100 residential units at 1495 Heron Road.
- The units will be medium-density multi-family buildings, with maximum heights varying across the site from 11 meters (3 storeys) up to 30 meters (9 storeys).
- On this site, the plan is to deliver a minimum of 40% of homes below-market value that will be affordable to households with moderate and median incomes.
- Build Canada Homes has issued a Request for Qualifications to select design-build teams for onsite housing construction. Proponents have been asked to demonstrate experience and innovation, especially in promoting modern methods of construction like prefabrication, modular, and mass timber.
- The selected proponents will be required to prioritize Canadian-sourced materials.
- The Request for Qualifications closes on December 22, 2025. Selected proponents will proceed to the Request for Proposals stage in early 2026.
