Juha Kahila is Head Of International Affairs for Y-Säätiö, Finland’s largest national and non-profit landlord and a pioneer in eliminating homelessness. It believes that preventing homelessness is the most rational way to combat the problem.
Mr. Kahila is one of the panel members participating in our online event Housing: The Affordability Challenge. Please use THIS LINK to register for the forum. There is no cost.
Hey Norm,
Thanks for sending this out. Is there a way to remove the mention of USA in the photo you attached to the post? Seems a little incongruous to have the Canada West Forum focus on USA issues. Seeing those letters anywhere these days makes me involuntarily react negatively.
Cheers,
G
I react in a similar way, but I remind myself that only about 40% of Americans support Trump’s current actions. That means a majority of the country’s citizens prefer humane treatment of people and rational actions by the President. This video is from YouTube, and I have no control over its content.
— Norm Farrell
Until we reach a point where proven Canadian solutions for housing are the subject of video documentaries like this, and homelessness is not an issue here, we should be examining best practices wherever we find them. In any event, novel and workable solutions arising in the US will have been developed in spite of Trumpism, not because of it.
I was struck by the contrast between the facilities operated under Y-Säätiö, and the SRO solutions here under BC Housing. Uplifting vs depressing.
Nationally, Prime Minister Carney’s Build Canada Homes project has progressed to the stage where there is a “Request For Information” process underway “to engage Canadian firms specializing in modern methods of construction (MMC)—including modular, panelized, and prefabricated systems. The RFI aims to gather insights from industry leaders on capabilities, business models, and delivery approaches.”
There are also two solicitations out to prequalify firms to be invited to bid in the future for a 1,000-unit housing project in Longueuil, and a 600-unit project in Dartmouth. These are part of the $13 Billion plan to “Build Canada Homes” on federal lands across the country. Except BC.
Despite the use in press releases of almost the entire thesaurus to describe how rapidly they’re moving, it will be at least one or two elections from now before any politicians get sore fingers from ribbon cutting.
https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2025/09/14/prime-minister-carney-launches-build-canada-homes
Interesting to note that the initial CEO of Build Canada Homes came to her post after a three-month stint as Head of Affordable Housing & Public Affairs with the private developer Dream Unlimited Corporation. She resigned just before a major controversy involving a tenants’ rent strike broke out over rate increase and maintenance issues. Her background prior to that leads me to believe that in the unlikely event there’s any connection between the events, she left because of the increases, not because she supported them.
As for the current homeless population, there’s this:
“Build Canada Homes will deploy $1 billion to build transitional and supportive housing for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. It will collaborate with key provincial, territorial, municipal, and Indigenous partners to pair these federal investments with employment and health care supports.”
The last sentence of that paragraph, despite Ms Bailão’s undoubted skill and keenness for the task, should give anyone familiar with bureaucracy pause, with pause being the operative word.