Ontario rewards Kawartha Lakes with $1.4 million through the Building Faster Fund
As part of its record-breaking investments in housing-enabling infrastructure, the Ontario government is awarding $1,442,307 million to Kawartha Lakes through the second round of the Building Faster Fund, which provides funding to municipalities that achieve at least 80 per cent of their provincially designated housing targets.
Kawartha Lakes broke ground on 451 new homes in 2024, which works out to 83 per cent of its 2024 housing target. This funding will help Kawartha Lakes build more homes and community infrastructure and supports the province’s plan to protect Ontario by investing in infrastructure to support economic growth and keep workers on the job.
“Through the Building Faster Fund we’re partnering with Mayor Elmslie to get shovels in the ground in Kawartha Lakes,” said Rob Flack, minister of municipal affairs and housing in a press release. “This investment, along with our government’s latest legislation, is another step forward in our plan to streamline and speed up approvals to get more homes built faster in partnership with municipalities across Ontario.”
Announced in August 2023, the Building Faster Fund is a three-year, $1.2 billion program that is designed to encourage municipalities to speed up municipal approvals processes and get more homes built faster. The fund rewards municipalities that make significant progress against their targets by providing funding for housing-enabling and community-enabling infrastructure.
“Thanks to the province’s support, today’s funding of $1.4 million will go directly to an affordable housing project in Fenelon Falls, addressing a vital need in our municipality. This project will see 30 units of affordable housing built and support the efforts of our Kawartha Lakes Haliburton Housing Corporation,” said Mayor Doug Elmslie at the announcement at Coty Hall. “We are committed to ensuring that every new housing development includes a fair share of affordable homes for low-income families. A waitlist of up to 10 years, what some of our residents are facing today, is simply unacceptable. We value our partnerships with other levels of government as we work together to tackle this housing crisis.”
The Ontario government is also helping to speed up the construction of new homes and infrastructure, including by streamlining development processes and reducing costs in close partnership with municipalities, through the Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act 2025.
