MONCTON—The New Brunswick Business Council (NBBC) partnered with the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the Government of New Brunswick to announce 1.6M in funding for a new provincial non-profit housing development organization called the Housing Hub of New Brunswick (HHNB).

The HHNB is being created to develop housing to support workforce attraction, population growth, and other local needs in rural and smaller communities across New Brunswick.

“The New Brunswick Business Council understands that an adequate supply of housing that is affordable is vital to the success of our communities and our provincial economy,” said Alex LeBlanc, President and CEO of the New Brunswick Business Council and Interim President of the Housing Hub of New Brunswick. “Recognizing the need to create housing equitably across the province, we have partnered to create the Housing Hub of New Brunswick Inc. This new organization will bring together partners from all levels of government, the non-profit and co-operative housing sectors, and the private sector to accelerate the development of housing in rural communities,” added LeBlanc.

There are 180 non-profit and co-operative housing organizations in New Brunswick, which own and operate roughly 6,600 affordable housing units across the province. Many of these organizations have signalled interest and desire to develop more housing to support working families and employers in their communities, but they require development expertise and capacity to pursue new projects. The HHNB will support these organizations to fill the capacity gap.

“Our government’s recent Fall Economic Statement is focused on building an economy that works for everyone while making life more affordable for all Canadians. In our rural regions, the lack of adequate housing is preventing companies from attracting the skilled workers they need to grow. The Housing Hub of New Brunswick will increase the availability of affordable housing, helping to support population growth and making our communities better places to live, work and raise a family.”

• Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for ACOA

“Housing affordability is a challenge in every part of New Brunswick and creates unique challenges in rural communities. We are acting to address the rural housing crisis by supporting the creation of a new non-profit organization to focus on accelerating the development of rural rental housing units in the province over the next decade.”

• Honourable Jill Green, Minister of Service New Brunswick and Minister responsible for Housing

The NBBC looks forward to sharing more information about the specific strategies and services of the HHNB in the coming weeks.