By Matt McCurrach, CHBA President
Last month, industry leaders came together in Saint John, NB for CHBA’s annual Home Building Week in Canada. Exciting meetings and events took place throughout the week, from advancing the association’s priorities during CHBA’s pre-conference Committee and Council meetings to celebrating the best in homebuilding and renovation across the country in the conference itself.
During Home Building Week in Canada, now Past President Sue Wastell – who, over the 15 months she was President attended more than 40 local, provincial and national events (an association record) – passed me the baton. Throughout my time on CHBA’s Executive Committee, I’ve been fortunate to get to know Wastell and see how eloquently she connects with members and government officials alike. We had the chance to thank her for her hard work and dedication to the association and I will draw on her expertise during my presidential term.
Challenges and opportunities
I also had the privilege of participating in association meetings, which give the inside scoop about the homebuilding climate across Canada. I feel fortunate to start my term as CHBA National President equipped with the knowledge I gained both at those meetings in Saint John and over my years of involvement with the association.
It was a great week where we discussed industry challenges and opportunities and celebrated the achievements of our membership and industry. I hope to see you all at next year’s event in the beautiful city of Victoria, BC, where I spent much of my childhood. Mark your calendars for May 11 to 15, 2025.
During the years I’ve spent volunteering with the association on behalf of members, I’ve come to realize that while there are individual nuances in regions from coast-to-coast, most of the challenges we face and many of our needs are the same. If a member in Alberta has an issue – whether it’s restrictive municipal processes to careless tax laws to surprise sprinklers legislation – chances are members in Nova Scotia are having similar problems. This further emphasizes why it’s so important to not work in silos when we’re trying to get policymakers to act; it’s where the strength of the association comes in. The association lets us tackle these issues as a country-wide collective, helping to keep catastrophes from happening when governments get it wrong, and offering thoughtful solutions for them to get it right.
Of course, our members help to inform that, and that’s the important work I want to continue in my travels to your local and provincial events this year. I look forward to hearing directly from members about your individual challenges and what matters most to you and your businesses. Hearing your stories will enable me to take your voices and experiences back to national to inform how we can continue to best advocate on your behalf.
In addition to the pre-conference business meetings in Saint John, it was wonderful to celebrate our leaders, members and industry during the conference in the second half of Home Building Week in Canada. Through the national Association Leadership Awards, we commemorated the great work of our volunteer members and recognized the outstanding leadership shown by our local and provincial HBAs and their EOs. Read more about the winners and their contributions to the association on page 29.
National Awards for Housing Excellence
We also celebrated the best in our industry at the CHBA National Awards for Housing Excellence gala. Year-after-year, I’m always impressed by the creative work members put forward in the national awards – just when I think I’ve seen the best, you, my fellow members, manage to raise the bar. We saw an incredible representation of the breadth of our industry: innovative entry-level units, luxury renovations, thoughtfully planned communities and imaginative marketing campaigns. Kudos to all the finalists and winners – it was wonderful to celebrate your achievements with you all. If you did not have a chance to attend the gala, take a peek at the expansive list of winners on page 23.
Wishing you all a great summer and I look forward to visiting with you in person in the year ahead.
Read more about CHBA President Matt McCurrach in the Member Profile in the Summer 2024 issue of Building Excellence.
