Provincial housing targets have hit Vernon with a lofty goal.
The city is included in the fourth group of municipalities tasked with bringing thousands of new homes to communities throughout B.C. Vernon's target is 1,829.
Effective Sept. 1, 2025, the city has five years to reach the goal, which was set following consultation and reflects 75 per cent of the estimated housing need.
Announced in May 2025, the fourth group of communities is part of the province's expanded housing-targets program to address high demand in growing communities and to continue to deliver the homes people need throughout the province.
Penticton is also included in the fourth round, but with a much smaller target of 908.
Others are: Burnaby 10,240, Coquitlam 6,481, Courtenay 1,334, Langley 6,596, Langford 2,993, Pitt Meadows 727, Richmond 6,753 and Squamish 1,069.
The 38,930 home total includes a recommended number of housing units by size, including how many should be rentals or owned and how many should be below-market rental units and rental units with on-site supports. More than 14,000 of these homes are below-market rentals.
"Many of these communities are already leaders in building more homes," the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs said in its Aug. 21 announcement. "Municipalities such as Burnaby, Langford and Penticton have already taken proactive steps, such as refining local policies and forging strong partnerships, to better meet the housing needs of their residents."
The province will use data from the housing-targets program to work with the federal government on infrastructure and amenity investments and ensure B.C. communities doing their part to tackle the housing crisis are recognized and supported at the federal level.
So far, more than 16,000 new homes have been built in the first 30 communities selected for housing targets.
