Housing Accelerator Fund
The City of Belleville remains committed to increasing the housing supply and addressing the dire need for affordable options for residents.
In February 2025, Belleville received $10.5 million in funding through the second round of the federal Housing Accelerator Fund. This funding agreement was put in place to accelerate the construction of 259 homes over the next three years (10,540 homes over the next decade) by eliminating barriers to building housing faster. The application included eight initiatives under the City of Belleville’s action plan:- Encourage alternative housing solutions for sustainable living
- Develop city-owned lands for housing to create rental and affordable housing units
- As-of-right permissions for missing-middle housing options
- Enhance zoning provisions to enable a diverse housing supply.
- Refresh the City’s Community Improvement Plan with additional affordable housing and missing middle programs
- Expand residential development opportunities through policy updates
- Streamline and enhance the development approval process for missing-middle and affordable housing
- Identify municipal infrastructure needs to enable additional development potential
- The eight initiatives will result in systemic planning changes and unlock thousands of potential units over the next 10 years.
Housing Accelerator Fund Updates
| Official Plan Update |
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The City has initiated an Official Plan Update to strengthen policies as it relates to promoting the integration of missing middle housing, supporting appropriate intensification, and enabling a framework to promote higher densities in built-up areas. |
| Community Improvement Plan (CIP) Update |
| The City has initiated an update to the Community Improvement Plan (CIP) to consolidate and remove redundant programs and develop new programs to assist the City in reaching the Housing Accelerator Fund and Building Faster Fund targets. |
| Pre-reviewed Detached Accessory Dwelling Unit Building Plans |
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The City of Belleville will be putting a Call to Action to local building designers to submit their designs to be included in the City’s catalogue of pre-reviewed detached accessory dwelling unit building plans. The goal is to streamline the process by connecting landowners with building designers, and incentivizing plans to be available to the public at a reduced cost. The pre-reviewed plans will offer faster, easier and more predictability through the permitting process, as the plans will be reviewed for Ontario Building Code compliance. In addition to the Call to Action for local designs, the federal government’s Housing Design Catalogue provides readily available standardized building plans for free use, making homebuilding easier. Note: Readily available building plans do not imply Zoning By-law compliance. A plot plan will be required as part of a building permit submission. |
| Housing Needs Assessment |
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Through the renewed Canada Community-Building Fund (CCBF), municipalities with a population of 30,000 or greater must complete a Housing Needs Assessment (HNA) to be eligible for funding under federal infrastructure programs. Additionally, all successful Housing Accelerator Fund municipalities must complete an HNA. The City of Belleville engaged Watson & Associates Economists Ltd. to complete the assessment to evaluate current and projected housing needs in the City. On May 26, 2025, the report was received by Council. Request a copy of the City’s Housing Needs Assessment (May 2025). |
| Accessory Dwelling Unit Rebates |
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On May 12, 2025, the City’s Community Improvement Plan was updated with two enhanced rebates for homeowners interested in creating accessory dwelling units. The Accessory Dwelling Units in New Housing Rebate will provide home buyers who include accessory dwelling units in a newly built home with a $5,000 rebate per unit (e.g. $10,000 for two units). The Accessory Dwelling Units in Existing Housing and Detached Accessory Buildings Rebate will provide property owners who create accessory dwelling units on their property with a $5,000 rebate per unit. Funds are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Eligibility requirements apply. For more information, visit: belleville.ca/ADU |
| Four Units As-Of-Right |
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On March 10, 2025, Council approved four units as-of-right through the City’s Residential Intensification Project. The project included various forms of intensification within the City including:
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| Planning Application E-Permitting System (CityView) |
| On February 10, 2025, the City of Belleville successfully implemented a new e-permitting system (CityView)to receive planning applications. The launch of CityView involved tremendous coordination between departments, cataloguing and verifying historical data. |