'Truly disappointed': Aurora mayor slams provincial affordable housing report as open season for development

Yorkregion.com
Feb. 10. 2022

Aurora Mayor Tom Mrakas is “truly disappointed” with a new provincial affordable housing report he worries could open the door to disturbing levels of development.

“Apparently, the solution to the housing affordability crisis is to limit public input and allow developers to build whatever they want, wherever they want,” he said in a statement.

“Profit-driven public planning won’t solve the affordability crisis in our communities. This is not a plan for the people.”

Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister, Steve Clark, said the province is also consulting with municipalities and the public to increase the housing supply.

“Everyone has a role to play in addressing the housing supply crisis. As our government consults with municipalities, the public and industry leaders and experts, we are balancing these perspectives to develop practical, forward-thinking policies that unlock and fast-track all types of housing for all types of Ontarians,” he said.

According to a provincial statement Feb. 8, the task force’s recommendations include five main areas to meet a goal of adding 1.5 million homes over the next 10 years:

• Make changes to planning policies and zoning to allow for greater density and increase the variety of housing.

• Reduce and streamline urban design rules to lower costs of development.

• Depoliticize the approvals process to address NIMBYism and cut red tape to speed up housing.

• Prevent abuse of the appeal process and address the backlog at the Ontario Land Tribunal by prioritizing cases that increase housing.

• Align efforts between all levels of government to incentivize more housing.

 

The report also recommends digitizing and modernizing the planning process, growing the skilled labour market and encouraging new pathways to home ownership, the province said.

“When Premier (Doug) Ford and Minister Clark created the task force, our instructions were clear: to deliver concrete, actionable recommendations to address the housing affordability crisis by getting more homes built,” said task force chair, Jake Lawrence, said.

“Lengthy reviews, bureaucratic red tape and costly appeals are making it too difficult to build new housing. We propose an ambitious and achievable goal to build 1.5 million homes over the next 10 years and the steps needed to get there.”