Burlington will miss out on provincial funding - not enough concrete being poured

By Staff

November 8, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

A report in the Toronto Star has a majority of 50 municipalities poised to fail their first high-stakes provincial housing assignment.

There is a “fundamental flaw” in the government program that may further stall development.

Burlington close to the bottom of the list of municipalities reaching their development targets.

Ontario’s housing ministry has a program that is in place to reward some and punish other  municipalities for something beyond their control.

This is what the province wants to see – just not enough of it happening in Burlington

The Ontario Big City Mayors (OBCM), a coalition of 29 municipal leaders that represents 70 per cent of the provincial population, is urging the province to rewrite the terms of its housing strategy, which is using a pot of $1.2 billion to award municipalities that reach at least 80 per cent of their provincially assigned target.

The housing ministry clarified that target late last month, telling municipalities they would be accountable for “housing starts” — the number of foundations laid during the initial stage of construction.

Municipalities don’t  pour concrete. They can’t lower interest rates, expand the number of skilled labourers or carry water into communities that have none.

Mayor Marianne Meed Ward at a budget meeting earlier this week.

“Tying funding eligibility to a foundation being poured is holding the municipality to account for something we can’t control,” said OBCM chair Marianne Meed Ward, who is also the mayor of Burlington. “That’s one of the reasons why so few of our members are qualifying.”

Burlington is among 26 cities, including Mississauga, Brampton, Markham, Newmarket, Oshawa and Vaughan, that are less than halfway toward meeting their targets this year. As of late October, 76 per cent of the municipalities Ontario is tracking — 38 of 50 — did not qualify for funding.

“If this is not fixed, the municipalities that won’t get the funding will have to do one of two things: raise taxes or not build infrastructure,” said Meed Ward. “Neither option is appropriate or palatable.”

Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Paul Calandra told the Star his government “will continue to work with our municipal partners in order to achieve our shared housing goals.

 “At the same time we have been clear that the Building Faster Fund is a tool through which our government is supporting municipalities committed to growth … with costs related to the housing enabling infrastructure required to support that growth,” Calandra said in an email Thursday.

Housing Minister Paul Calandra – “We will not allow for any distractions.

“We will not allow for any distractions … we are counting on each municipality to do their part.”

Later that day, the province released its fall economic statement, which set aside additional money for municipal infrastructure projects, but OBCM said the pot won’t go far.

The Star reached out to municipal staff and elected officials in a dozen communities across Ontario to understand the challenges keeping them from meeting their provincial targets and building more homes faster.

They talked about the true costs of building new neighbourhoods, being publicly shamed by Premier Doug Ford and why most of the municipalities that signed up for this challenge never had a fighting chance of winning.

Mayor Meed Ward is struggling to produce a budget that comes in at 4.99% for the city portion of the property tax bill – this isn’t going to help what already looks like a target that may not get met