It was good to hear the minister announce several months ago a change in mandate for the Canada Lands Company to ensure at least 20% affordability. I'd like to see that rise higher than 20%, but it's certainly a good start.
There's a severe limitation on access to federal lands because there's a fund, the federal lands initiative, where the government essentially buys land from itself and then makes it available to municipalities and non-profits to develop.
The amount of land that can be made available is limited by that budget amount. That's why we're advocating to switch to a leasing model. A one-dollar lease to a non-profit, co-op or municipality for 99 years would allow us to build that affordable housing. It would also allow the government to retain the value of an asset on its balance sheet. In fact, the value of that asset would grow as the land is being developed.
Significantly, another important message is to look beyond the concept of surplus land and look at the idea of lazy land.
I live here in Ottawa, I ride my bike past federal government buildings outside of the downtown core and they are surrounded by an acre of mowed grass. The government office use can still continue in that building and we can build 50 townhomes across the front of the street and create affordable housing compatible with the existing use. This would unlock the true potential of the federal land inventory across the country.