Newspaper and Electronic Media

Response to Ontario Draft Regulations

Gord Perks: Inclusionary zoning proposal gets it wrong for Toronto”; Toronto.com, 1 Mar 2018.

Rahul Gupta: “Current System is better than Ontario proposal”; Toronto.com, 23 Feb 2018.

Peter Milczyn: “Ontario housing minister explains inclusionary zoning rationale”; Toronto Star, 30 January 2018.

Star Editorial Board: “Ontario badly botches affordable housing policy”; Toronto Star, 26 Jan 2018.

Mike Layton: “Ontario supports developers over providing affordable housing”; Toronto Star. 25 Jan 2018.

Samantha Beattie: ”Proposal to force building more affordable housing falls short, advocates say”; Toronto Star, 23 Jan 2018.

John Lorinc: “Wynne’s Liberals gut their own affordable housing policy”; Spacing, 17 Jan 2018.

Samantha Beattie: “Province’s affordable housing plan ‘achieves the exact opposite’s, councillors says”; Toronto Star, 16 Jan 2018.

Response to Ontario Legislation

Sophia Reuss: “Ontario Passes Promoting Affordable Housing Act, Introduces IZ”; UrbanToronto, 13 Dec 2016.

Sophia Reuss: “Inclusionary Debate Continues as City Opposes Bill 204″; UrbanToronto, 13 Sep 2016.

Jennifer Pagliaro: “City of Toronto challenges Queen’ Park over affordable housing legislation”; Toronto Star; 18 Aug 2016.

Laurie Monsebraaten: “Province to give cities new affordable housing powers”; Toronto Star, 18 May 2016.

Editorial Board: “A breakthrough on affordable housing”; Toronto Star, 16 Mar 2016.

Allison Jones: “Ontario to introduce legislation that would boost affordable housing units”; Globe & Mail, 14 Mar 2106

Betsy Powell: “City keen to get new affordable housing powers”; Toronto Star, 14 Mar 2016.

Laurie Monsebraaten: “Ontario to green light ‘inclusionary zoning’”; Toronto Star, 13 Mar 2016.

Other

Justin Skinner: “Social Planning Toronto looks at inclusionary zoning”; InsideToronto.com, 26 May 2015.

Editorial Board: ”Affordable housing – an obvious fix”; Toronto Star,17 May 2015.

Mike Layton: “Make developers dedicate space for affordable housing”; Toronto Star, 30 April 2015.

Marco Chown Oved: “Three paths to mixed-income neighbourhoods”; Toronto Star, 11 April 2015.

 

Radio Broadcasts

Richard Drdla fields questions about inclusionary zoning; CBC Metro Morning, 5 May 2015.

Martin Blake, Vice-President of the Daniels Corporation, endorses inclusionary zoning; C BC Metro Morning, 27 Nov 2014.

Peter Milcyzn, Liberal MPP, discusses inclusionary bill that he has introduced; 26 Nov 2014.

The attached is a critical assessment of the proposed regulations released by the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs & Housing on 18 December 2017 for the Promoting Affordable Housing Act, 2016 (the Ontario legislation authorizing the use of inclusionary zoning (IZ) in the province). It first looks at the problems associated with the overall approach, and then with certain specific regulations.  See the Critique

The attached document provides a summary of the proposed regulations released by Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing on 18 December for the Promoting Affordable Housing Act, 2016 (the Ontario legislation authorizing the use of inclusionary zoning in the province).  See the Summary

The Ontario government in December of 2016 passed legislation authorizing the use of IZ in the province. The implementation of this legislation is dependent upon the the province also releasing the associated regulations. The release of those regulations has been pending for some time.

The delays are related to the behind-the-scenes lobbying by the development industry. The developers have been pushing for a regulation that would require all municipalities to compensate the developers for the affordable units. More specifically, the required compensation would be arbitrarily set across-the-board at 50% of the price or rent difference between the market units and corresponding affordable units.

This regulation would be particularly counterproductive. It would subvert the very purpose of the legislation by ensuring that it generated no or very little affordable housing. Municipalities do not have the cash or other financial resources to provide mandatory compensation like this. Faced with this obligation, they will chose either not implement IZ programs, or implement programs providing affordable housing in a very limited or shallow way.

Opposition to this regulation has rightfully developed, as news has leaked out about the efforts of the developers. Both the City of Toronto and the Association of Municipalities of Ontario have objected to this possible provision. Similar objections were registered in a letter prepared in late March by Social Planning Toronto and signed by over 30 community and non-profit organizations across Ontario (see letter). During Question Period on 3 April, MPP Cheri DiNovo quizzed the Minister about the status of this provision, while calling it a “poison pill” (see transcript).

While undermining the legislation, this provision is also remarkable for being so unnecessary. The proof of this can be seen is the large number of the US programs that have successively operated without any or limited compensation. And it is generally recognized that no compensation is typically needed particularly in fast-growing communities like Toronto and those in the surrounding GTA.

It is also important to note that there is no precedent for this sort of mandated across-the-board compensation in the US programs. The municipalities there have been free to fashion their own regulations – sometimes with and sometimes without compensation – that respond to their particular and disparate local conditions and needs. They seemed to have acted responsibility because these programs have generated considerable affordable housing while not apparently impairing the ability of developers to build. Municipalities in Ontario should be given the same flexibility and opportunity.

This mandatory inclusionary zoning program, adopted in 2007 and revised in 2015, is unlike most programs in that it has been designed primarily to secure fees-in-lieu rather than affordable units, and particularly those built on-site in mixed-income developments.

This profile, which was originally prepared in October 2009, has been updated in May 2016 to reflect the regulatory changes made in October 2015.

Ontario’s legislation authorizing municipalities in the Province to use inclusionary zoning, entitled the Promoting Affordable Housing Act, was passed on 6 December 2016 and received Royal Assent on 8 December 2016.  The inclusionary zoning provisions were enacted through amendments to the Planning Act.  Read the legislation.

Thursday, May 21 from 10-12 pm College Street United Church 452 College Street (College at Bathurst)

A forum to discuss the opportunities and challenges presented by an Inclusionary Zoning program for the City of Toronto. It is a proven tool to provide much needed affordable housing.

Moderator: Brian Eng, Board Member, Social Planning Toronto

Speakers:

Jennifer Keesmaat, Chief Planner, City of Toronto
Remo Agostino, Vice President, Development for The Daniels Corporation
Michael Shapcott, long-time housing and homelessness advocate
Richard Drdla, Affordable Housing Consultant and Policy Analyst

All interested people are invited including affordable housing advocates, developers, planners, policy analysts and community builders.

LIMITED SEATING

Please reserve your seat at: http://inclusionaryzoning.eventbrite.ca  This is a free event The venue is wheelchair-accessible Light Refreshments will be served For inquires call Rebecca Phinnemore at: (416) 351-0095 Ext. 216 rphinnemore@socialplanningtoronto.org

This hedgehog with a complicated name smiles and say thank you. So buy levitra and send it to the forest. There’s a lot of thankful. Quiet decide how many send and you can do it.

On 6 May 2015, Mike Layton, Toronto City Councillor, put forward a motion to City Council requesting staff develop a strategy for the City to implement inclusionary zoning.

http://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2015/04/30/make-developers-dedicate-space-for-affordable-housing-councillor.html

In an editorial on 5 May 2015, entitled Affordable Housing – An Obvious Fix, the Toronto Star called for the Province to pass legislation authorizing the use of inclusionary zoning, describing it as an “essential” and “a long overdue and obvious reform”.

http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/2015/05/04/toronto-should-endorse-an-obvious-way-to-boost-affordable-housing-editorial.html