The federal government and the City of Saskatoon have reached an agreement to build 940 housing units in the city over the next three years.

For this purpose, the federal government is providing more than $41 million to the municipality of a major city in the province of Saskatchewan in western Canada from the federal "Housing Accelerator Fund."

The mentioned fund aims to reduce administrative procedures and update local zoning policies to accelerate the construction of housing.

On the municipal side, the "Saskatoon Action Plan" relies on 13 local initiatives aimed at building housing that meets the diverse needs of the city's residents. The housing will be built near public transit as well as downtown.

"Saskatoon is experiencing significant growth. There is an urgent need to find solutions in the housing sector," says Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark, "The city council will try to make zoning changes to achieve the goals."

Consequently, zoning changes will make it possible to increase the height of buildings near public transit and increase population density near higher education institutions.

The action plan also aims to encourage the construction of multi-family homes and reduce parking requirements.

Federal Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Sean Fraser believes that the agreement with the City of Saskatoon will help ease the housing crisis.

Fraser said in a statement that the agreement ensures Saskatoon receives the additional housing it needs to address this crisis.

According to the municipality's estimates, "this agreement will contribute to stimulating the construction of more than 25,200 housing units across the city over the next decade."

Saskatoon has a population of more than 266,000 according to the official 2021 Canadian census.