Working together to build more homes faster

Newmarket – At a Special Meeting of Council, York Regional Council called upon the Government of Ontario to consider solutions to increase the housing supply and address housing affordability while keeping the Region financially whole throughout the process.

“York Regional Council remains committed to addressing the housing affordability crisis and supports the overall goal of Bill 23, More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022,” said York Region Chairman and CEO Wayne Emmerson. “With all stakeholders continuing to work together, we can meet our shared priority of creating homes for all ages, abilities, incomes and stages of life. Adapting to the changes stemming from Bill 23 will involve advancing housing projects while ensuring unintended financial impacts are not solely leveraged through future tax levy increases.”

Bill 23 impacts how municipalities fund growth infrastructure, removing costs previously funded from development charges and introducing several new housing exemptions and discounts. These changes could reduce York Region revenues by a minimum of $497 million and potentially up to $1.6 billion over the next 10 years.

To maintain existing service levels without new funding from senior levels of government, a one-time property tax increase between 2.3% and 7.3% would be required, plus an additional water and wastewater rate increase between 4.9% and 14.3%.

To help adapt to the changes from Bill 23, York Region is requesting the Province of Ontario consider several actions to keep York Region financially whole, including:

• Confirm funding is in place to provide growth-related infrastructure and community services to support building more homes in York Region over the next 10 years
• Define and apply definitions of affordable and attainable housing in consultation with municipalities; the goal is clear, results must lead to greater affordability
• Support a coordinated approach by including important partners from the development and homebuilding industry in relevant conversations
• Reinstate Housing Services as an eligible service for funding under the Development Charges Act

“While the intention of Bill 23 is to encourage an increased housing supply, there will be challenges when it comes to the implementation without considering these recommendations,” said City of Richmond Hill Regional Councillor Joe DiPaola, Chair of the Region’s Planning and Economic Development. “York Region continues to work with all stakeholders to fill the gap of additional measures and accountabilities required to address the demand, affordability and sustainable infrastructure for our growing Region. Bill 23 introduced new tools intended to achieve these objectives and we look forward to working with the province to achieve 2031 housing targets.”

York Region recognizes all levels of government, the development industry and other partners all have a role to play in finding opportunities to streamline the development approval processes and create more affordable housing options. All stakeholders must have a hand in the solution as no one entity alone can solve the complex housing affordability crisis alone. York Region continues to advance the work in building more homes faster with support and engagement from all parties.

For more information on housing options, visit york.ca/housingaffordability

The Regional Municipality of York consists of nine local cities and towns and provides a variety of programs and services to 1.2 million residents and 54,000 businesses with 650,000 employees. More information about the Region’s key service areas is available at york.ca/regionalservices

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Media Contact:

Stephanie Crowley, Corporate Communications, The Regional Municipality of York
289-763-2598
@email