Dear Friends,

Although it’s been four years, it doesn’t feel all that long ago when we were together in Victoria, BC for CHF Canada’s 50th Annual Meeting celebrating a half century of successes while endorsing a vision statement of ‘Co-operative Housing for All’.

Well, we’ve certainly had quite a time since then, with important accomplishments, a global pandemic, and only one in-person conference in London. But now, as we look forward to getting together once again in Halifax, we are confident that the future holds great things for co-op housing in Canada!

Though we talked confidently back in 2018, did we really expect we’d be so successful in our campaigns to protect co-op affordability and support growth?

In 2021, we saw some of the key pieces fit into place, with rental assistance continuing to roll out with phase two of the Federal Community Housing Initiative, and co-ops who had originally been excluded because of operating agreements that expired before April 2016 became eligible for the program.

In 2021, we also launched a successful Fix the Formula campaign in Ontario to protect over 21,000 households in Housing Services Act co-ops after the end of mortgages. In early 2022, this campaign secured new regulations that will ensure ongoing rental assistance.  

We know there are still several provinces where more work is needed in order to secure rental assistance, but we have made huge strides and are well positioned to conclude this important work in those remaining provinces.

We also made great progress on growth and development, both in terms of the sector’s capacity to support development with organizational and staff supports, as well as making a bold and compelling case for government investments to build new co-op homes. This work led to $1.5 billion in dedicated federal investment for the growth of co-op housing, announced in Budget 2022, representing the first dedicated federal co-op housing program in 30 years.

We also faced many challenges, from supporting members through the second year of the pandemic with region-specific information, advice and virtual education, including a full-featured virtual annual conference. 

We worked actively to demonstrate the co-operative principal of concern for community by advocating for the immediate implementation of an Urban and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy, something for which we’ve seen movement but are still pushing to see the needed response.

All the while, we have improved CHF Canada’s operational efficiency and effectiveness in preparation for a new era of growth and sustainability. In 2021, we completed CHF Canada’s governance reforms, and we continued to improve our financial picture by contributing more to our reserves and endowments funds, enabling us to better withstand future challenges and capitalize on future opportunities.

Through all of this, your support and engagement, be it your prompt dues payments or messages to your local MP or provincial representative in support of our many campaigns, are vital to our success. Thank you for this. It is what makes co-operative housing strong, successful and such an important and great place to call home.

Full Report