On March 6, 2025, the Government of Canada announced the re-opening of the Affordable Housing Innovation Fund (AHIF) portal.

Proponents are encouraged to submit proposals that address barriers to innovative homebuilding. Priority will be given to applications using modular and prefabricated building to help address homelessness that can be scaled and replicated. These solutions should focus on the delivery of homes.

“The Affordable Housing Innovative Fund gives housing partners the chance to adopt new funding models and innovative building techniques that can be scaled up across the country,” said the Honourable Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities.

Additional prioritization will be given to:

• Communities that have submitted Community Encampment Response Plans through the Unsheltered Homelessness and Encampment Initiative.
• Previous Affordable Housing Innovation Fund applicants with demonstrated experience in developing solutions to address homelessness.

Funded by the Government of Canada and delivered through Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the AHIF is an initiative of the National Housing Strategy and encourages new funding models and innovative building techniques in the affordable housing sector.

The AHIF provides flexible financial support to encourage, develop and test a range of innovations that encompass financial and funding models, construction techniques and technologies, and other innovative approaches to housing.

The National Housing Strategy (NHS) is a 10+ year, $115+ billion plan to give more Canadians a place to call home. Progress on programs and initiatives are updated quarterly on the Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada (HICC) website. The Housing and Infrastructure Project Map shows affordable housing projects that have been developed.

As of September 2024, the federal government has committed $57.57 billion to support the creation of over 156,000 units and the repair of over 297,000 units. These measures prioritize those in greatest need, including seniors, Indigenous Peoples, people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, and women and children fleeing violence.

NHS is built on strong partnerships between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, and continuous engagement with others, including municipalities, Indigenous governments and organizations, and the social and private housing sectors. This includes consultations with Canadians from all walks of life, and people with lived experience of housing need.

All NHS investments delivered by the federal, provincial, and territorial governments will respect the key principles of NHS that support partnerships, people, and communities

AHIF is a $580 million program intended for projects that showcase new funding models and innovative building techniques. The total investment is expected to support the construction of approximately 10,800 new affordable housing units over six years. There is currently $67M in contribution funds remaining in the AHIF funding.

The post Affordable Housing Innovation Fund Now Accepting Applications appeared first on Kingsville Times.

A family from Illinois is anxiously awaiting a decision from a Canadian tribunal as they seek asylum north of the border, claiming that America’s politics have made them feel unsafe. 

Ontario Premier Doug Ford's move to impose a surcharge on electricity flowing south of the border seems to have gotten the attention of U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump turned his sights on the new levy in a late-night post on his Truth Social platform.

A.J. Lawson has been living the dream this week. He had his first career NBA start on Friday, lining up for his hometown Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena. Then on Monday, Lawson had his best game as a professional basketball player.

The WECHU has received confirmation of our area’s second and third case of measles.  Additional cases and exposure risks are expected over the coming days and weeks. We are working closely with neighbouring health units as part of a provincial response and are in regular communication with the Ontario Ministry of Health regarding the situation in Windsor and Essex County.

Residents directly affected from cases of measles should expect the WECHU to contact them to determine potential public places for which there may have been exposure to others. It is our role to notify the community of any potential exposures in public places, like healthcare settings, shopping centres, or restaurants and this notification will occur rapidly once we obtain this information.

The Windsor-Essex County Health Unit asks anyone who visited the location listed below on the identified date to monitor themselves for symptoms of measles for 7 to 21 days from the date of exposure.

Location: Toldo Lancer Centre
2555 College Avenue, Windsor, ON, N9B 3P4
March 7^th, 2025
6:30 pm – 11:30 pm

Location: Chick-Fil-A
3060 Howard Avenue, Windsor, ON, N8X 3Y7
March 7^th, 2025
5:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Location: TMC Urgent Care Walk-In Clinic – Kingsville
273 Main Street East, Kingsville, ON N9Y 1A7
March 8^th, 2025
1:15 pm – 3:35 pm

Vaccination is the most effective way to prevent measles. For those who are unvaccinated the risks for measles are serious and can include pneumonia, deafness, brain inflammation, and in the most severe cases, death.

• Those born before 1970 are considered immune to measles.
• Those born after 1970 who have not received two doses of Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR) vaccine may need an additional dose.
• Children 1-17 years old need two doses of measles vaccine to be immune from the disease.
• For those who may not be aware of their measles vaccination status, it is recommended to speak with a healthcare provider to determine whether or not a dose of the vaccine is appropriate for you.
• For those who do not have a healthcare provider, you are encouraged to contact Virtual Urgent Care or Health811 for more information.

On a daily basis, the number of measles cases detected in Windsor-Essex will be posted to the WECHU website for the public to view. Exposure notifications will be sent through the WECHU general subscribers mailing list, through the media, and posted to the WECHU social media account promptly once this information is confirmed. For more information and guidance on what to do if you may have been exposed, or to subscribe for updates, visit the WECHU website at wechu.org.

The post More Information on Measles Transmission appeared first on Kingsville Times.

As part of our commitment to local news, CBC News is expanding nationwide. We are looking for experienced multiplatform reporters to join our team. These roles, based in one or two-person bureaus, will focus on broadening our coverage and ensuring the stories and voices of communities are reflected in our journalism across digital, radio, social, streaming and TV.

A recent policy change at London Health Sciences Centre to curb the rapid spread of measles has London doulas worried about the emotional and physical impact it could have on her clients.

It was five years ago today that the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic, in a week that saw countries around the work impose lock downs and travel restrictions to slow the rapid spread. 

Gabriel Cabral, 32, and Sean MacPherson, 56, were severely burned on April 25, 2023, and later died of their injuries. Their direct employer John Kenyon Ltd. pleaded guilty to 1 of 4 charges in court last week.

Ontario won’t begin removing bike lanes in Toronto until March 20 at the earliest — but a group of cyclists is applying for an injunction to prevent the work until their legal challenge against the plan has its day in court.

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe has pushed his case for more federal funding for Ottawa during a meeting with Mark Carney on his first day as prime minister designate.

A person has been found dead inside a historic building in Bowmanville where a major fire happened last week, according to the Ontario Fire Marshal.

As police continue to search for suspects and a motive in a mass shooting at a Scarborough pub Friday, one local councillor says he's received calls that suggest it may be connected to violence in the towing industry.

Three Toronto taxi companies and one ride-hailing service are urging council to include their industry in the city's newly adopted "Buy Local, Buy Canadian" campaign as U.S. tariff threats continue.

When Emily Powell-Heaton reached out to Ben Stiller on social media, her goal was to knock another item off her bucket list.

Meindert de Boer from Dresden, Ont. broke the record for most Jenga blocks stacked on a single vertical Jenga block, using 3,132 pieces to create a structure measuring more than 100cm tall. 

Hamilton Police are investigating an accident where a stolen car went out of control and flipped, seriously injuring an occupant. Police say that at approximately 2:10 this morning a single motor vehicle was travelling northbound on Upper Ottawa Street at Redbury Street with four occupants, when the driver lost control causing the vehicle to roll over. A passenger was ejected from the vehicle and was found lying in the southbound lanes. The unidentified male was transported to the hospital with life threatening injuries. The male is now listed as critical but stable at this time. Three other unknown males fled the scene prior to police arrival.

The investigation has found that the motor vehicle, a 2006 Honda Civic had been reported stolen earlier this month. Investigators are asking for the public’s assistance and are asking drivers in the area at the time of the collision to check their dash cameras as well as homeowners to review any camera footage that they may have.

Hamilton Police Collision Reconstruction Unit continues to investigate the collision and anyone with information is asked to contact the Collision Reconstruction Office at 905-546-4753 or [email protected]

For those who wish to provide information anonymously, they can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or submit anonymous tips online at Crime Stoppers Hamilton’s Website.

Ward Two Councillor Cameron Kroetsch says he is being treated unfairly with his suspension from the Hamilton Police Services Board for alleged infractions of its code of conduct. Kroetsch issued an open letter on the one-year anniversary of his suspension (which is part of the procedure when a code of conduct complaint is made against a member of an Ontario Police Services Board.) The matter was sent to the Ontario Civilian Police Commission (OCPC) for investigation.

In his letter Kroetsch notes the complaint was lodged by then Board Chair Pat Mandy alleging Kroetsch breached the code by making social media comments critical of the board and for asking that the city of Hamilton be able to direct the use of Police Service Board budget surpluses. Since the filing of that complaint three members of the PSB were not reappointed. Noted Kroetsch, “in other words, the majority of those who voted on referring this complaint to the OCPC are no longer on the Board.”

Kroetsch further notes that since the original complaint was filed, the Board has piled on additional charges to the complaint without providing him with an opportunity to answer to them. These include various media comments he made critical of the board, and his attendance at a rally protesting the Police shooting of Erixon Kabera last November.

Kroetsch says it took more than six months before the OCPC got around to interviewing him. He compared his case with that of former Board Member Lloyd Ferguson who had a complaint against him wrapped up in less than a month over the Christmas holidays. Kroetsch writes, “as time has worn on, it’s become even clearer to me that the actions the original board took in filing this complaint were procedurally unfair, and abuse of process, biased and personally motivated”

The Bay Observer visited the Ontario Civilian Police Commission website and found a posted notice, reading, “On April 1, 2024, the Community Safety and Policing Act, 2019 (CSPA) came into force and the Police Services Act (PSA) was repealed. The OCPC cannot accept any new appeals, applications, or requests for investigation, and the applicable CSPA entities will assume responsibility for any new cases, as appropriate.” The notice goes on to say the OCPC is working its way through the caseload it had at the time of the new entity taking over the work, concluding “At a future date, to be determined by the Ministry of the Attorney General, the OCPC will be dissolved.”  

For the first time in a year, the London region has recorded a lab-confirmed case of the measles.

The Halton Regional Police Service has made an arrest and laid multiple charges in response to a violent home invasion in Oakville.

On January 10, members of the HRPS were called to investigate a home invasion in the area of Coronation Drive and John Laird Circle in Oakville where three masked suspects entered the home, pointed firearms at the residents, and demanded valuables before stealing a Mercedes SUV.

HRPS officers quickly located and recovered the victim’s stolen SUV, however the suspects and suspect vehicle fled the area and could not be located by police.

Immediately following the home invasion members of the 2 District Criminal Investigations Bureau took carriage of the investigation.

As a result of the investigation, on March 6, 2025, Numan Khan (27) of Etobicoke, was arrested and charged with a string of charges including breaking and entering and forceable confinement.

Further suspects are being sought and the investigation is continuing.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the 2 District Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905-825-4777 ext. 2216.

Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.