The City of Toronto is taking a stand against the skyrocketing price of construction materials, which a local councillor describes as a growing threat to the city’s economy.

The concerns are included in a member’s motion that received preliminary approval from city council during its Thursday meeting.

The motion calls for Toronto’s city manager to ask the provincial and federal governments “to address the increasing costs of building materials, particularly lumber, to determine if action is required to ease the costs locally.”

Coun. Paul Ainslie tabled the motion, with support from Coun. Michael Thompson.

Prices for construction materials have made breathtaking gains during the pandemic. According to reports by Statistics Canada, the price of lumber increased by 68 per cent between March 2020 to March 2021, while fabricated metal products and construction materials rose by nine per cent.

Despite much higher prices for various materials, Statistics Canada found that overall demand for construction also accelerated, attributable in part to “a desire for more living space during the pandemic” and low interest rates.

The unusual combination of dizzying prices and frantic demand have some worried that an eventual breaking point may be near, which could result in an untenable rise in housing costs or the devastation of the local construction industry.

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