York Region mayors weigh in on new housing targets, powers under province's latest housing push

"You can’t just drop numbers on every town and city and say go at it. We need the financial tools to make it happen"

Yorkregion.com
Aug. 28, 2023

York Region mayors have weighed in on the latest round of so-called strong mayor powers in exchange for meeting the province's new housing targets, with some questioning the ability of municipalities to make it happen without more support from Queen's Park.

"So much of what is needed to build more homes faster is out of a municipality’s control, yet with Bill 23 and this most recent announcement, municipalities are being held responsible for the shortfalls," said Richmond Hill Mayor David West.

Last year, Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act, saw the province cut some development charges, fees municipalities charge developers on new construction to pay for roads, sewers and more. The fees are passed on to new home buyers.

Now, communities that pledge to meet their targets will receive money from the provincial $1.2 billion Building Faster Fund that will provide up to $400 million per year to municipalities.

While the province had already set housing targets for Newmarket, Richmond Hill, Vaughan and Markham, on Aug. 21, it released targets for Aurora, Whitchurch-Stouffville, Georgina and East Gwillimbury.

If the municipalities agree to meet their housing targets, the new powers would take effect Oct. 31.

Those powers include allowing mayors to propose housing-related bylaws and pass them with the support of only one-third of council. They can also override council approval of certain bylaws and prepare their municipality’s budget rather than council doing it.

Moreover, they give the head of council the ability to appoint the municipality’s chief administrative officer; hire municipal department heads; and reorganize departments, create committees, veto certain bylaws if they believe it could interfere with the province’s priorities; and bring forward matters to council if they believe it advances provincial priorities.

While West and Newmarket Mayor John Taylor support building new homes to address the housing crisis, both said without revenue, municipalities are not able to build the infrastructure needed to support the new homes the province is pushing.

“The logical thing ... is to say ‘Here’s extra funding to build the infrastructure you need to support these homes.' But the opposite occurred. Our funding source through development charges was dramatically reduced. That defies logic," said Taylor, who was denied strong mayor powers after saying the town couldn’t meet what he calls the province’s unattainable housing pledge.

"You can’t just drop numbers on every town and city and say go at it. We need the financial tools to make it happen. And even then, this is not within our control. There are already indications that the rate of building is slowing down dramatically due to market pressures.”

Taylor said the province is dictating these housing targets, but municipalities can’t “magically” make that happen.

“We don’t build houses. We issue permits when they’re asked for. We don’t build the homes and we can’t make someone build them.”

West, whose city committed to the housing pledge of 27,000 units, agrees, adding that growth needs to pay for growth.

"That’s the principle behind collecting development charges; to provide the necessary funds for growth infrastructure such as roads, sewers, parks, community centres and more," he said.

"Since Bill 23 was announced, I have taken an active role on this topic, meeting directly with Minister Clark, then associate minister Parsa, and Ontario Big City Mayors, expressing that Richmond Hill will not be able to fund growth infrastructure without a provincial funding supplement making up for the potential development charge losses due to province’s Bill 23. We were assured by Premier Ford that municipalities would be 'made whole'," West said. "With the Premier’s Build Faster Fund announced on Monday, we learned that only municipalities that meet 80 per cent of their annual growth targets would qualify for this potential grant."

West said a grant program that rewards only municipalities that achieve their housing targets is not a solution to addressing the funding gaps created by Bill 23.

"Who will pay for the roads, sewers, parks and more if development charges are not collected and the province doesn’t fund this gap? It is not acceptable for property taxpayers to fund this growth," he said.

While Whitchurch-Stouffville Mayor Iain Lovatt doesn't think the province has released enough information on the mechanics of the Building Faster Fund, he welcomes the opportunity to receive financial support for accelerating housing over the next eight years.

The town's planning staff is currently preparing an information report to council in response to a request from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to commit to a housing target of 6,500 new units by 2031.

"As a town, we will do our part to provide homes to help the province achieve its goal of 1.5 million new homes in the next 10 years," Lovatt said, adding, "We will make a formal commitment to the province in the near future."

As for strong mayor powers, Lovatt said he does not foresee the need to use it.

"Our council works very hard to build consensus on staff reports that move the town forward," he said. "We work very well together and with our senior leadership team."

While strong mayor powers isn't a tool the town necessarily needs, Aurora Mayor Tom Mrakas didn't rule out using it if necessary.

"There could be certain situations that arise in the future where strong mayor powers could be useful, specifically when it comes to accelerating housing," he said in a statement.

"But I want to be very clear that I think our current council works very well together, and I’m committed to working with my council colleagues to make decisions that align with our Official Plan, provincial priorities, as well as the shared vision we have with community members on how we grow Aurora.”

The province is asking for about the same number of homes to be built that the town was planning on anyway, totalling 8,000 housing units.

"I will be waiting for the particulars of the newly announced Building Faster Fund to see how our town stands to gain in accessing this critical funding," Mrakas said.

He added Aurora has already demonstrated its commitment to addressing the housing crisis through developing an Affordable Housing Action Plan, removing minimum parking requirements in its Major Transit Station Area, as well as streamlining its development process.

The provincial target of 6,200 homes by 2031 for Georgina may pose a challenge, said Mayor Margaret Quirk.

"This is an ambitious target given that the town issued permits for about 1,792 homes between 2015 and 2022. This new target ... represents more than three times that number in the same amount of time," she said.

"We will be conducting the necessary analysis to determine the implications and challenges with meeting that growth target,” she added.

Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti was unavailable for comment, however, the city's director of planning and urban design, Giulio Cescato, said sufficient zoning approvals exist as of this week for the city to meet the target of building 44,000 homes by 2031.

That said, the city does not control when builders might apply for site plan approvals or building permits, he added.

"All that to say, if the industry acts to finalize their zoned units to a point where they can pull permits and then pulls those permits, we’re reasonably confident we can meet the targets," Cescato said.

He said the Building Faster Fund appears to be the province’s attempt to make good on their promise to make municipalities "whole" on the budgetary shortfalls created by recent changes to the Development Charges Act, but added his concerns.

"Any additional funding is welcome and will help the city implement hard and soft infrastructure necessary to accommodate growth, (but) I am somewhat concerned that the levels of funding are tied to housing starts, something the city does not ultimately control, and it is not clear that the funds promised would completely meet the projected budget shortfalls."

Cescato remained "reasonably confident", however, that the city can meet its housing targets, providing the housing market rebounds in 2024 and the city's ability to access government funds.

As a director, Cescato said he could not really speak to the strong mayor powers except to say that there is certainly the potential for those powers to be used effectively in advancement of the housing targets on a case-by-case basis.

Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca said the Building Faster Fund’s financial support for the infrastructure needed to support new housing is a "great first step" toward helping cities like Vaughan achieve its goals.

"We are in the midst of a housing affordability crisis and this an all-hands-on-deck moment for all leaders," he said.

"I look forward to continuing to work with the provincial government, our council, staff and residents on building a bright future.”

The expansion would bring the total number of municipalities with strong-mayor powers to 49 across the province, including East Gwillimbury, if it commits to building 4,300 homes by 2031.

King Township is the only municipality in York without a housing target, although a large subdivision and possible future Southlake Regional Health Centre are expected to be built at Bathurst Street and Miller’s Sideroad as part of a controversial move to remove the land from the Greenbelt for development.