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Ontario and Ottawa will spend billions to help cut municipal housing development charges in an effort to spur new builds across the province. Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Doug Ford announced Monday.
RCI reports that the federal and provincial governments will each spend $4.4 billion on housing-related infrastructure over the next 10 years. Carney announced alongside Ford and Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow at a joint news conference in Etobicoke.
The deal will cut development charges in half for three years, Carney said. Multinationals use development charges to pay for infrastructure that supports housing, like roads, sewers and water.
The majority of the $8.8 billion in funding is intended to help cover those infrastructure costs for municipalities that lower development charges, Carney said. However, municipalities will also be expected to help for the cost of reductions.
Ontario will work with municipalities and partners to put forward a list of infrastructure projects for approval.
The funding deal is the first to be announced through the federal government’s Build Communities Strong Fund and is meant to help municipalities cut development fees by 50 per cent for the next three years.
Experts warn municipal development fees have ballooned and inflated the cost of homebuilding in recent years, making it harder to build much-needed supply.
