Building industry weighs in Bill 73 Deputations

NRU
Nov. 4, 2015
Geordie Gordon

Ontario building industry representatives expressed concerned to the provincial standing committee about the impact proposed changes to the Development Charges Act and the Planning Act, contained in the Smart Growth for Our Communities Act (Bill 73), could have on housing costs.

Ontario Home Builders Association and Tribute Communities vice-president Neil Rodgers told the committee that OHBA would like the province to take a stronger leadership position when it comes to ensuring alignment of provincial and municipal policy.

“We are very concerned that the legislation before us today does not take any real steps to ensure that municipal official plans and zoning by-laws are consistent with and conform to provincial planning policy by actually requiring municipalities to pre-zone growth centres, transit corridors at appropriate densities. As it stands, most areas targeted for growth and intensification are vastly under-zoned with policies that are decades out of date,” he said.

Rodgers used the city of Toronto as an example of this disconnect between provincial policy and municipal official plans.

“I wish I could be so supportive of what is happening in Toronto, or not happening, where zoning is archaic. Where existing subway lines remain under zoned and new subway lines continue to be stuck in perpetual policy work and consultation. Through the difficult and confrontational process of rezoning, community groups ask ‘why so high’ and planners try to defend historically low densities or transit decisions that cannot be defended against good planning principles, the very smart growth principles that this act gets its name from.”

Building Industry and Land Development Association CEO Bryan Tuckey told committee about some of the concerns raised by BILD throughout the Bill 73 consultation process. He warned that without careful consideration of proposed changes to development charges, in particular the removal of the 10 per cent discount for transit costs, the impact on new home buyers could be significant. [See July 22 edition of NRU.]

“When the 10 per cent eligible service requirement was removed, the burden equivalency for new homeowners was approximately 10 times greater than that of the property taxpayer, an illustration of the actual impact on the purchase price of new homes. We recommend the province look at and test the public policy effect of these changes in transit DC charges by instituting a mechanism that ground truths the charges and their impact … so that we don’t end up seeing what I term as unnecessary gold-plated infrastructure.”

BILD executive board chair and Tribute Communities vice-president Steve Deveaux addressed the issue of voluntary payments to municipalities by simultaneously applauding Bill 73 for doing away with them, while asking that the bill include language allowing cooperative agreements.”

“We raised concerns regarding payments extracted by municipalities through the use of voluntary agreements...We are pleased that Bill 73 addresses this by including a section that states that municipalities shall not impose a charge to a development or service unless it is permitted under the act,” he said, “What Bill 73 fails to acknowledge it that there are instances involving cooperative agreements where the developer agrees to make payments to advance required infrastructure that [are part of] approved municipal background studies and are in the best interests of the municipalities and community. As written, Bill 73 would prohibit these. What we’re recommending is there be wording in Bill 73 to acknowledge and allow for the cooperative agreements entered into to fund this critical infrastructure.”

The provincial Committee on Social Policy will conclude its public meetings on Bill 73 on Monday, November 9.