By Pepper Parr
February 3rd, 2024
BURLINGTON, ON
Ward 3 Councillor Rory Nisan was the last of the Burlington speakers presenting to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy
Mr. Rory Nisan: Where is my son going to live? How is my son going to afford a place? How far away will he have to move? Will we have to move to be close to him and his family someday? He’s only three years old, but eventually he will need his own place, and he deserves his own future.
We’re all here today because we’ve all made building more homes faster our top priority. I’m grateful to every one of you for coming out on a snowy January day, so thank you.
Honestly, Halton region just works.
I come with good news and bad news, and I like to start with good news usually. Despite the shortage of homes and despite the high cost of living, the residents of ward 3 in Burlington, and indeed all of Burlington—all of Halton—are living some really great lives.
More good news: Halton has a mature two-tier system of local government. We’re not afraid to do the hard work, to look inward, prove the processes and find efficiencies. We’ve done it before, and we can do it again. In fact, it’s already happening.
Our CAOs are working together now to see what can be downloaded or uploaded. Let’s be clear, though, that there is not yet any evidentiary basis for substantive duplication no matter what rhetoric you might hear, nor is there any evidentiary basis, at this point, for downloading rather than uploading. Keep in mind that three out of four municipalities in Halton are still towns. There has not been a single motion at a lower-tier municipality calling for single-tier.
Honestly, Halton region just works. I go there. I put my region hat on. I do what’s best for the region. I don’t bring local politics there. Some decisions are just better made at a broader level, and the results speak for themselves. Make no mistake, the region is independent and just as much a part of local democracy as the lower-tier municipalities, even if it’s not subject to strong-mayor powers that may frankly incentivize consolidation of power at a lower level.
Now, you might have on your notepads there two columns—upload, download—and I appreciate that, but respectfully, let us do the hard work. We will work collaboratively to develop an evidentiary basis for our decisions that is rooted in the local reality in Halton to get more homes built faster. Those decisions are not going to be made on a whim. They will have the legitimacy of support of the triple majority. Honestly, 99% of what we do at Halton is already by consensus. We’ll fix what’s broken. If it ain’t broke, we’re going to leave it alone. I promise if we need anything from you, from the Ontario Legislature, we will call you.
Okay, bad news time: We’re not going to build more homes faster if municipalities are chronically underfunded for major infrastructure. There is going to have to be a give-and-take. In Burlington, we’re spending $2.2 million this year alone to improve and streamline our planning and permitting process. We’re even experimenting with artificial intelligence for detailed technical reviews.
If you really want more houses built, and I know that you do, you’re going to have to finance us. Why? Why can’t we just do it ourselves? I’m going to be really brutal here. We can’t drop massive tax increases that would be necessary onto our residents. We’ll get tossed out of office. We’ll be replaced by populist “zero tax increase” campaigners. We will get nowhere. We’ll just keep fighting and the houses are not going to get built.
“We’re pushing the feds for a new municipal growth framework, but that’s not going to happen without Ontario.”
So, what’s the alternative? The province and the federal government step in, collaborate with municipalities: pay for what is supposed to be paid, first of all; and second, fund those major growth-related infrastructure and other costs that meet your objectives. This is what we are asking for in the new deal for Halton region.
I’m also Ontario caucus chair for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, so we’re pushing the feds for a new municipal growth framework, but that’s not going to happen without Ontario. If you’re serious about building homes faster, you have to fund infrastructure.
What’s the alternative? Do we want our kids, our grandkids, our nieces and nephews going to school in portables for their entire school career? Do you want community centres, overrun pools, overfilled parks, overcrowded? Or how about just water and waste water? Without that, nothing is getting built. This is what’s going to happen if the province doesn’t start funding us properly—and this goes back to previous governments as well.
Here, at Halton region, we have some shortfalls: $14.7 million in 2024 for health and social services is owed in funding from the province; $15.5 million per year due to the Development Charges Act, limiting the collection of development charges to fund critical infrastructure; an estimated total shortfall of $940 million by 2031 for additional residential development charges as a result of Bill 23; and we have a need to accelerate $750 million of key water and waste water capacity infrastructure projects.
The $200-million fund is very welcome, but it won’t even cover a third of Halton’s needs. This is why regional council unanimously adopted a motion calling for a new deal for Halton region to address the funding shortfall for cost-shared health and social services programming, a shortfall in development charges revenues, and to ensure critical water and waste water infrastructure is adequately funded to keep pace with the growth that you’re telling us we have to do and that we are happy to do.
If you want to know Halton region’s position, which was approved just this past December by all members of regional council unanimously—I will share this with you momentarily—here are the copies of the call for the new deal. Maybe you’ve heard that municipalities are responsible for 60% of public infrastructure in Canada, and we get 12% of the tax dollars. You can fix this. We can build more homes faster. Let’s all pick up our hammers and get it done.
Canada is the best place to live in the world for a reason.
Mr. Rory Nisan: Everything you said, MPP Shaw, is accurate. FCM is making a really strong push to the federal government, but we need the same sort of push which is also launching provincially to fund these soft costs. So if we build a house, that’s great; if we can connect it to the taps, that’s absolutely necessary.
Canada is the best place to live in the world for a reason. It’s because we have the community centres. It’s because we have the firefighters, the police officers. It’s because we have green space that we can go and play in. So I think that we can aspire to more than just connecting homes to the waste water if we want and expect our children to have the same quality of life that we’ve had.
Mr. Rory Nisan: Thank you—not for long. I do want to say to the question of us getting money from the federal government and asking them for that waste water money, absolutely, we would be more than happy to get direct funding from the federal government down to municipalities, like they have in other areas like the Housing Accelerator Fund.
Burlington approved four units, as of right, which is unlocking the key to the Housing Accelerator Fund. Unfortunately, it’s not unlocking anything with the province. Those policy changes are not unlocking funding with the province, and honestly, we feel that they should. We are grateful for the increases from the provincial government, don’t get me wrong, but you still owe us. We’re still in the hole. So we would really appreciate it if you get to even and then create that new fund
Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Now I’m going to whip over to Rory—my favourite name, an Irish name.
Thank you. I just got this handed to me, hot off the press. Amazing. This was unanimously passed in beautiful Burlington. The resolution is for a new deal for Halton region. Give me more details, exactly, specifically. What would you want? Dream list.
Mr. Rory Nisan: This was unanimously approved at Halton regional council, so it comes with the authority of the 24 members of Halton region, spanning the four local municipalities acting in Halton region’s interest.
The new deal for Halton region is us asking that we partner with the provincial government on the incredible growth that we are being asked and we are willing to deliver. So it’s asking that the provincial government, the Legislature, be a partner with us, and that you fund what needs to be funded to achieve the objectives that you have laid out for Halton region.
We’re magnanimous; we think that everyone in Ontario is deserving of a new deal. But seeing Toronto being able to make trade-offs for highways for funding—we don’t have any highways we can trade you, but we can promise you we will build 100% of the homes you are asking for. We’ll probably beat it, frankly. But we won’t beat it, we won’t meet it, we won’t even scrape it without provincial support. I really believe that this government understands that. That’s why you did the $200-million fund over three years. But we’re just getting started, as MPP Rae said.
And if I may just add: We can’t forget, in this new deal or in any deal, those who are most in need. Chair Carr mentioned how the paramedics work and how Halton region has stepped up. One thing that makes Halton region nearly one of a kind is that we have a place for every homeless person in need. We can approach every person who is unhoused, I should say, and offer them a place to be.
You won’t find that everywhere. We’ll even take them to visit their pets at the animal shelter. That’s how much we care for these people.
Mr. Matthew Rae
My question is to Rory, to start. I’m always going back to examples, because it really helps me when I go back to Minister Calandra. Are there one or two examples—we heard the infrastructure funding—of other processes that can be changed to help get those—Marianne mentioned that there are almost 3,000 in the pipeline. Are there things the region can do to help ensure that site plan approval occurs quickly? Paul mentioned three different groups: conservation authorities, city, region. Is the region looking at ways they could potentially just have one sort of one-stop window?
Mr. Rory Nisan: I have to be honest, with Bill 23 devolving planning down to the local municipalities, that has got to be where you need to cast your eyes at this point. Conservation Halton meets its planning time frames well over 90% of the time. Region of Halton is also very quick in responding, but they’re not going to be a factor going forward in those planning timelines. If you want to get the homes built, you’ve got to look at the lower-tiers.
The city of Burlington is now working with the accelerated timelines that we were given to start approving developments. Committee just brought to council a new long-term residence that’s seven storeys. I’ll tell you it was not unanimously supported by local residents, but we knew it was the right thing for Burlington and that’s why we brought it forward.
I appreciate your interest in how we can make Halton region faster. Maybe if we got that royal assent on Bill 23, that would definitely help us a lot, just to have that clarity. You know, it’s very tough, MPP Rae, to be working under a cloud of “I’m not sure which direction we’re going and which way.” That makes it hard for developers too. That’s why we have 41,000 in the pipeline and not 41,000 that are being built right now.
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Mr. Rory Nisan: “Where is my son going to live? How is my son going to afford a place? How far away will he have to move? Will we have to move to be close to him and his family someday? He’s only three years old, but eventually he will need his own place, and he deserves his own future.”
I love new Fathers and how they react to a new born of there own making no matter what there stance and commitment to the world this tiny baby becomes a compartmentalized exemption to those goals, there is nothing you wouldn’t do to protect them and keep them safe,
Announcing this is really an animalistic FYI from the heart that things have now changed.
Konstantin Kisin is a Russian born British satirist and author and is also a new Father, the following link is of a debate at the ‘Oxford Union that went viral on ‘You Tube’ ’https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiVp6_J0pSEAxWuOTQIHU0yCN0QtwJ6BAgiEAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DzJdqJu-6ZPo&usg=AOvVaw2E7GNN3tX4-D9chwFWZlEK&opi=89978449
A conundrum in life, you will either smother this child’s life with love and opportunity and risk being disappointed in the outcome or have more children. then you become more invested in the lives of the real people you serve and I don’t just mean a spare I mean three or four, go ahead Rory, max out that pay check lets all find out together.
A lot to decipher here as to who is on first,second, third base or, out in left field. The role of government is to get out of the way of those who want to build houses by removing barriers, red tape, nimbys etc. As to funding whatever. Get your collective acts together as there is only one pocketbook, the taxpayer. So please sort out which pocket feeds what. Governments seem to be fiddling with each other as Rome burns.
Right Joe and with municipal politicians like Nisan completely out of touch with reality “ALL of Burlington—ALL of Halton—are living some really great lives” Cannot believe he actually said that, but as the above confirms, he did. ALL Rory really, who are you, kidding! Were you not listening to the budget delegations. The Burlington politicians were clearly presenting their view point, not those of Burlington residents.