David Plourde

“The solution to Canada’s housing crisis can be found in the forest.” The words of Mayor David Plourde in his open letter to Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing MP Carol Hughes. “Canada’s forest sector can offer expedient, economical and climate-resilient solutions to this problem, through the benefits of building with wood and harvested wood-based products,” wrote Plourde, in the letter. His letter to Hughes outlines that there are ‘boots’ on the ground ready to help and as far as he’s concerned, it is the federal government that can get things rolling. Among his recommendations, “actively promote Canadian wood and mass timber solutions within a federal affordable housing strategy, establish a harmonized regulatory framework for permitting processes to expedite approvals safely and responsibly, adopt a performance-based approach and increasing tall wood building height allowances in the National Building Code, and promoting national certified, pre-fabricated building typologies for wood-based structures that meet municipal standards.”