Ontario is providing $1,653,397 to the City of Peterborough through the third round of the Building Faster Fund, the provincial government announced. The payment recognises the city’s progress on housing starts in 2025, when builders broke ground on 545 new homes, surpassing the municipality’s annual target by about 16 per cent.
What the funding is for
The Building Faster Fund was created to reward municipalities that make demonstrable progress toward provincially assigned housing targets. The program supplies money for the infrastructure needed to support increased housing and expanding communities.
- Funding announced: $1,653,397
- New homes started in 2025: 545
- Exceeded annual target by: 16%
“Our government is relentlessly focused on creating the conditions municipalities need to meet the growing demand for more homes,” said Rob Flack, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
The provincial announcement ties this payment to broader measures introduced by the government to accelerate housing construction, including legislative changes and programs intended to reduce costs and speed approvals.
Local response and municipal measures
Mayor Jeff Leal welcomed the funding, saying the city is taking steps to support housing construction through reduced development charges and by implementing a Community Planning Permit System to streamline approvals.
“Thank you to Minister Flack, MPP Smith and the Government of Ontario for their partnership to help get more homes built in our community,” the mayor said.
At the provincial level, the Building Faster Fund is a multi-year program launched in 2023 with up to $1.2 billion to encourage municipalities to meet housing goals. The government also pointed to recent provincial laws designed to speed construction and reduce costs for homebuilders, naming the Building Homes and Improving Transportation Infrastructure Act, 2026 and the HST Relief Implementation Act (Residential Property Rebates), 2026 as recent steps.
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Provincial payment to Peterborough | $1,653,397 |
| New homes started in 2025 | 545 |
| Amount by which target was exceeded | 16% |
City officials have signalled they will use the funding to support the infrastructure required for new housing and continued growth. Municipal actions highlighted in the announcement — including lowering certain development charges and streamlining permitting — are intended to create conditions that encourage builders to invest locally.
For residents, the immediate effect will be incremental: infrastructure projects funded through the program typically contribute to servicing new neighbourhoods and can reduce barriers for future housing starts. The province frames the payments as a reward for municipalities that meet targets, while also providing capital to support continued development.
Details on specific local projects to be financed with this allocation were not included in the provincial release. City staff and council will outline next steps as the funding is incorporated into municipal budgets and planning initiatives.
