$1 million in funding will support access to shared, curated planning data for housing developers and municipalities nationwide

TORONTO—May 28, 2024— Ratio.City, a Toronto-based urban planning software and data company and a division of Esri Canada, has been selected as a semifinalist by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) as part of the Housing Supply Challenge (Round Five: Level Up). This achievement brings in $1 million in funding to scale Ratio.City’s comprehensive solution to Canada’s housing supply challenge. With its revolutionary, user-friendly platform that collects and curates essential planning data, Ratio.City facilitates collaboration between housing developers and municipalities across Canada, helping to address the housing crisis.

“Every city in Canada has its own unique housing development challenges, but there are a handful of universal truths. Data is hard to come by, the application process can be complex for both planners and developers, and there can be high early-stage risk. Together, these issues can stall the development of new housing,” said Monika Jaroszonek, managing director, Planning and Housing, Esri Canada. “Our one-stop-shop solution is designed to address all these problems. We’re thrilled that this funding from the CMHC will allow us to expand our reach across the country.”

Ratio.City was founded in 2017 with the goal of simplifying the planning process. The firm has since developed web-based collaboration tools that give municipal planning staff and housing developers shared access to data that is normally siloed, privatized or otherwise difficult to locate. By increasing data transparency and providing more certainty around development timelines, Ratio.City aims to make more housing projects economically feasible, ultimately leading to more housing units being brought to market faster.

“Our platform was designed with scalability in mind. By working with both large data providers and municipalities, and building automations that expedite data upload, we are well-positioned to leverage our platform to support housing development across Canada,” said Ms. Jaroszonek. “Giving developers and municipalities a shared foundation of data will allow them to work together more efficiently. While there are many possible angles from which to tackle the housing crisis, we believe this is an important avenue for change.”  

This is Ratio.City’s second round of funding from the CMHC. From fall 2022 to spring 2024, Ratio.City received CMHC Housing Supply Challenge Round 2 funding, which supported building out functionality on the existing platform. In September 2023, Ratio.City was  acquired by Esri Canada, the leading provider of geographic information systems (GIS). This relationship enables Ratio.City to integrate more types of data, improving the speed and accuracy of housing opportunity discovery.

Strategic expansion will focus on major municipalities across Canada, targeting non-technical, professional users in housing development and municipal planning. Since the platform is built for expediency and ease of use, requiring no experience with GIS or data science, brief training is sufficient for users to navigate the system. With its powerful 3D modelling tools, the platform allows users to simulate scenarios and conduct deep site analysis, enabling data-driven decisions that will further bolster nationwide housing development.

Explore Ratio.City’s solution at  ratio.city.

About Ratio.City
Ratio.City, a division of Esri Canada, is a one-stop shop for planning and policy data. The online platform provides the tools for the public and private sectors to optimize planning and land development. Ratio.City facilitates collaboration between housing developers and municipal staff, expediting housing approval processes and reducing risk using data as a common language. The platform expands  Esri Canada’s ArcGIS-based community planning solutions portfolio and brings together data and technology to build more livable, equitable communities. More information can be found at  ratio.city.

About Esri Canada 
Founded in 1984, Esri Canada provides geographic information system (GIS) solutions that empower people in business, government and education to make informed and timely decisions by leveraging the power of mapping and spatial analytics. These solutions enable organizations to better manage their resources, plan their future and collaborate within and beyond their organization. Esri Canada’s products and services help advance successful digital transformation. The company serves more than 14,000 organizations from 15 offices across Canada and is based in Toronto. Esri Canada has been recognized as one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies for 12 consecutive years. More information can be found at  esri.ca. Follow Esri Canada on  X (Twitter),  Facebook,  YouTube,  Instagram and  LinkedIn.

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