The advocates also flagged the National Building Code as outdated
Canada's federal housing push must do more than increase supply.
The new homes built through a $13 billion federal commitment need to be designed so people with disabilities can actually live in them, two senior government officials said on National Housing Day.
Marie-Josée Houle, federal housing advocate, and Christopher Sutton, Canada's accessibility commissioner, issued a joint statement calling for accessibility standards to be built into every new unit constructed under the federal government's Build Canada Homes initiative.
The Build Canada Homes agency, launched in September with $13 billion in initial capital, represents a major federal intervention to spur construction.
Yet the two advocates warned that without strict accessibility requirements, the initiative could repeat a historical mistake.
"History offers a warning," the statement read. "Many of us can still see wartime houses built in the 1940s to address a national housing crisis. They provided affordable homes, but were not designed to meet the diverse and changing needs of Canadians, including veterans returning from combat with disabilities."
The scale of the challenge is significant. Over eight million Canadians aged 15 and older live with a disability, a number expected to grow as the population ages.
Yet people with disabilities continue to face barriers when seeking housing that meets their needs, the officials said.
The tools to solve this problem already exist. Accessibility Standards Canada has developed national standards for accessible and accessible-ready housing, featuring flexible design elements like reinforced walls that can later support grab bars or lifts.
When built into designs from the start, these features cost less and take less time to install than retrofitting later.
"Designing for accessibility and adaptability from the start does not have to cost more -- and it offers true public value for public investment," the statement said.
The advocates also flagged the National Building Code as outdated, saying it still lacks comprehensive accessibility requirements and exempts many small-scale housing projects. Under the Accessible Canada Act, the nation aims to achieve full accessibility by 2040.
The announcement reflects broader tension in Canada's housing strategy. While affordability remains the headline focus, accessibility advocates have increasingly raised the alarm that building more units without ensuring they meet the needs of people with disabilities leaves vulnerable populations behind.
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