Montreal to end 20-20-20 mixed housing requirement, release 40 City-owned sites for housing

Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada announced that the City will end the mixed housing requirement on new housing projects.

At a press conference Friday, Martinez Ferrada said that her administration will replace the requirement in two phases, starting with a single 20 per cent off-market housing requirement and through financial incentives to be recommended by a future working group.

The mayor also announced that the City has identified 80 City-owned sites — about half of them ready for construction —  to be used for off-market and mixed-use housing projects. The list of sites is expected to be made public March 1.

“By relaxing the regulations for a mixed-use metropolis, focusing on off-market housing, and making use of City-owned land, we are removing barriers to construction and giving stakeholders the means to take action,” Martinez Ferrada said.

The financial contributions required under the mixed housing bylaw will be frozen at 2025 levels and will only apply for projects larger than 18,000 square metres, during the first phase.

Dubbed the 20-20-20 bylaw, the Règlement pour une métropole mixte (RMM) was introduced under former Mayor Valérie Plante and required new property development to set aside 20 per cent of the units each for families and social and affordable housing.

During the municipal election campaign, Martinez Ferrada promised to abolish the requirement which the real-estate developers had criticized as imposing burden.

The Plante administration had already relaxed many of the regulations.

Friday’s announcement by the mayor drew support from the Montreal Economics Institute (MEI) which said that a 2023 study by the conservative think tank showed that “regulatory uncertainty” and “the rigidity of municipal requirements” increased risks for investors.

In a statement, MEI spokesperson Renaud Brossard said, “The Martinez Ferrada administration understands that imposing extra costs of up to $10,500 per unit does not stimulate housing construction.”

“We’ll have to wait and see what replaces this bylaw, but today’s announcement is a step in the right direction in addressing our housing supply problem,” he added.

The mayor also said there will be additional funding support to subsidize land acquisition by non-profits and in loans, including a $50 million earmarked in the City’s budget. Non-profits will also be granted loans up to $3 million in partnership with the Plancher Fund.

“The city must be, and will be, a real, present, and financial partner. Breaking down silos, working together, and delivering concrete and rapid results: that’s how we’re going to respond to the housing crisis, and it starts today,” Martinez Ferrada said.