The province is promising that it will soon be faster and cheaper to build homes in Ontario, thanks to a package of sweeping legislative changes introduced on Tuesday.
New rules will allow up to three units on residential properties with no need for rezoning while also cutting fees for developers and re-evaluating heritage rules.
Locally, the plan will require Oakville to identify how it can add an additional 33,000 new homes above its current targets.
It also will eliminate Halton's role in land use planning, leaving Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Halton Hills responsible for local policies and approvals.
The legislation, titled More Homes Built Faster, contains about 50 new measures intended to spur and speed up development.
The Progressive Conservative government has promised to build 1.5 million new homes over the next ten years to address the existing housing shortage and accommodate anticipated population growth.
"For too many Ontarians, including young people, newcomers, and seniors, finding the right home is still too challenging. This is not just a big-city crisis: the housing supply shortage affects all Ontarians, including rural, urban and suburban, north and south, young and old," said Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.
Oakville MPP Stephen Crawford added, "The proposals, if passed, will help Oakville grow with a mix of ownership and rental housing types, making it more affordable for newcomers, young people and seniors to purchase their dream homes."
Will shift growth costs to taxpayers, warns councillor
The legislation was introduced one day after an Oakville election that was fought mainly around development issues.
Mayor Rob Burton, as well as the town and regional planning departments, declined to comment on the impact of the changes until they have more time to review the draft legislation.
The Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) issued a statement saying that some changes are welcome, but others are concerning.
"We will work with the government on the ideas that have the potential to make housing more affordable, and we will oppose changes that undermine good economic and environmental policy."
The association noted that proposed development charge discounts would shift the cost of needed growth infrastructure from developers to property taxpayers, abandoning the principle that growth should pay for growth.
It also adds that there are no mechanisms to ensure developers pass along costs savings in the form of more affordable housing.
Ward 5 councillor Jeff Knoll also expressed concern with shifting financial burdens from the development sector to property taxpayers – a move he says only serves to make housing more expensive.
"While I am encouraged to see action from Queen's Park on the issue of housing affordability, I am very concerned about the continued erosion of local decision-making matters," he said.
Experts question impact
Despite the broad scope of changes proposed, Oakville planning experts are skeptical that it will spur a significant amount of new housing.
Russell Cheeseman, a lawyer specializing in planning and municipal law, described the changes as "baby steps – maybe a few strides in the right direction."
"I'm not sure it's going to have much of an impact at all, quite frankly," he said.
Konstatine Stavrakos, a planning and municipal lawyer with Oakville-based O'Connor MacLeod Hanna LLP, agrees.
"This bill is based on the perception that all developments are raring to go, to be built, and that municipalities are holding things back. I think the reality is pretty far from that."
He notes that the gap between what is needed and what is being built can't be blamed solely on approval delays or costs.
Builders are also limited by financing issues, the supply of construction equipment and workers, the need for technical resources and business realities.
And then there's the challenging mix of rising interest rates and the impact of inflation on construction costs.
Stavrakos says he's already hearing of projects being cancelled or delayed due to the cooling housing market.
As for the impact of allowing additional units on residential lots, he doubts there will be significant uptake in Oakville.
"There's a big difference between being allowed to do something and having the desire to do it," he said.
He also questions whether the economics will work to encourage smaller developers to buy up properties to convert into triplexes.
"Changing the regulations around land uses are, in many ways, low-hanging fruit that is easy to do, and they get a lot of headlines. Is it going to really change how much we are building? It will probably add some, but I'm just not sure that it's going to have the dramatic impact that is being discussed here," Stavrakos said.
Highlights of the legislation
- Three units will be allowed on residential lots. The units may be contained in an existing home or include basement suites, laneways or garden homes. Municipalities may not set minimum unit sizes or require more than one parking space. New units will be exempt from development charges
- No site plan control will be required for residential developments of up to 10 units.
- Eliminate planning processes in seven upper-tier municipalities, including Halton.
- Work toward establishing minimum density targets and faster approval timelines for development near major transit stations.
- Exempt affordable housing, non-profit developments, inclusionary zoning units and "select attainable housing units" from development charges, parkland levies and community benefit charges.
- Reduce development charges for rental construction and parkland requirements for highrise developments.
- Limit third-party appeals to the Ontario Land Tribunal. Allow the tribunal to prioritize cases, dismiss appeals and order unsuccessful parties to pay costs.
- Consider changing the property tax assessment of affordable rental housing. Consult with municipalities to reduce property taxes on multi-residential apartment buildings.
- Make changes to the Ontario Heritage act to "strengthen the criteria for heritage designation" and update guidelines.
- Establish a provincial-municipal working group to look at vacant home taxation.
- Remove the two-year freeze on planning applications for aggregate projects.