Alberta announces reopening of government units for affordable housing

Alberta is spending an extra $16 million to fix up aging government-owned affordable housing units to make them inhabitable once again.

Social Services Minister Jason Nixon says the money is on top of the $94 million already allocated in this year's budget.

The money will be used to replace windows and repair roofs along with other rehabilitation projects.

Nixon says the government is working with housing providers to identify which units should get priority.

He says over the next eight years, the government aims to invest $9 billion to build 25,000 new affordable homes.

But he says in the meantime, they need to fix up the homes that already exist.