Ontario bill giving cities power to expand boundaries for housing passes
The Ontario government has passed a bill giving cities the power to expand their borders “at any time” in order to build more homes.
The legislation, known as Bill 97 or the Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, passed its third reading on Monday at Queen’s Park. It will go into effect once it receives Royal Assent.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing first introduced the bill in early April. At the time, they said it would create a regulatory framework for a wide variety of changes that will help the provincial government reach its goal of building 1.5 million homes.
Part of the legislation will see two land use planning documents—the Provincial Planning Statement and A Plan to Grow: Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe—merge to “support growth” near transit stations and allow more homes to be built in rural areas.
Municipalities would also have “more flexibility” to decide when and where to expand their settlement area boundaries.
In November 2022, the provincial government modified Hamilton’s Urban Official Plan and its Rural Official Plan to expand the city’s boundaries by 2,200 hectares, something that was criticized by environmental law charity Ecojustice as being “unlawful.” The legislation that passed today will allow municipalities to take this action themselves.
“The proposed changes would ensure land is available for industry and manufacturing, encourage office and institutional uses in areas closer to transit, and provide flexibility to convert lands for mixed uses – supporting the kinds of development and jobs that communities need,” officials said in a presentation in April.
Officials stressed that existing Greenbelt Plan protections will remain in place; although they stopped short of promising not to develop on the land in the future.
In an effort to encourage more development, the government is freezing 74 provincial fees to reduce the cost of applications and red tape associated with home building.
A review on a cooling-off period for freehold homebuyers would also take place.
TENANT PROTECTIONS
In addition to giving municipalities the ability to build in more rural areas, the bill also includes a number of changes officials say will protect renters from so-called renovictions.
Under Bill 97, landlords will be required to give tenants a 60-day grace period to move back in once renovations are complete at the same rent they were paying before.
If a landlord doesn’t allow the tenant to move back in at the same rate, the tenant would have two years after moving out or six months after the renovations are completed to file a complaint with the Landlord and Tenant Board.
Fines for offences under the Residential Tenancies Act will double to $100,000 for individuals and $500,000 for corporations.
While officials are touting these changes as the next step in addressing the housing crisis, others have expressed concern that the legislation gives the Minister of Housing more powers that could diminish protections for some tenants.
Amendments to the City of Toronto Act and the Municipal Act, made under Bill 97, gives the minister power to impose “restrictions, limits and conditions” when it comes to the demolition or conversion of residential rental properties.
A Toronto report, submitted to the province about a month after the legislation was tabled, found the city’s policies have helped secure about 5,000 replacement rental units and ensured tenants are provided with compensation. The policy requires developers who intend to demolish rental buildings of more than six units replace existing apartments for those tenants.
These units must be of similar size and offered for the same rent for a period of 10 years.
"Without this critical policy framework, it is likely that significantly more rental units would have been demolished and not replaced due to new developments. This would have negatively impacted both the supply of rental units and availability of affordable rental units,” staff wrote in the report, adding that few details have been provided about how the minister intends to use these regulatory powers.
“As currently drafted, these changes could purport to enable the Minister to fundamentally change the City's current rental replacement practices,” the report says.
Toronto city staff say the new regulations could allow for replacement rental units to be significantly smaller than the units they are replacing, limit the city’s ability to restrict rents, reduce tenant compensation and allow owners to provide “cash-in-lieu of replacement units.”
They also expressed concern that the province could create new definitions of affordable rental housing that don’t reflect the city’s plan.
Toronto staff requested the province not move forward with any changes to rental replacement by-laws until “meaningful consultation” can take place. As of early May, staff said they had not been invited to participate “in any form of consultation on the development of a regulation.”
The Association of Municipalities Ontario (AMO) also said it would be “watching closely” to ensure replacement by-law frameworks “balances the need to provide additional protections to tenants while at the same time increasing housing supply.”
For the most part, the AMO was supportive of the province’s efforts; however, it expressed concern that requirements for rental replacements not be set too low. An example they provided would be preventing municipalities from imposing minimum square footage requirements for replacement units.
“Local governments are a mature order of government and should be allowed some flexibility to meet local needs and circumstances.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Donald Trump says he urged Wayne Gretzky to run for prime minister in Christmas visit
U.S. president-elect Donald Trump says he told Canadian hockey legend Wayne Gretzky he should run for prime minister during a Christmas visit but adds that the athlete declined interest in politics.
Historical mysteries solved by science in 2024
This year, scientists were able to pull back the curtain on mysteries surrounding figures across history, both known and unknown, to reveal more about their unique stories.
King Charles III focuses Christmas message on healthcare workers in year marked by royal illnesses
King Charles III used his annual Christmas message Wednesday to hail the selflessness of those who have cared for him and the Princess of Wales this year, after both were diagnosed with cancer.
Mother-daughter duo pursuing university dreams at the same time
For one University of Windsor student, what is typically a chance to gain independence from her parents has become a chance to spend more time with her biggest cheerleader — her mom.
Thousands without power on Christmas as winds, rain continue in B.C. coastal areas
Thousands of people in British Columbia are without power on Christmas Day as ongoing rainfall and strong winds collapse power lines, disrupt travel and toss around holiday decorations.
Ho! Ho! HOLY that's cold! Montreal boogie boarder in Santa suit hits St. Lawrence waters
Montreal body surfer Carlos Hebert-Plante boogie boards all year round, and donned a Santa Claus suit to hit the water on Christmas Day in -14 degree Celsius weather.
Canadian activist accuses Hong Kong of meddling, but is proud of reward for arrest
A Vancouver-based activist is accusing Hong Kong authorities of meddling in Canada’s internal affairs after police in the Chinese territory issued a warrant for his arrest.
New York taxi driver hits 6 pedestrians, 3 taken to hospital, police say
A taxicab hit six pedestrians in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday, police said, with three people — including a 9-year-old boy — transported to hospitals for their injuries.
Azerbaijani airliner crashes in Kazakhstan, killing 38 with 29 survivors, officials say
An Azerbaijani airliner with 67 people onboard crashed Wednesday near the Kazakhstani city of Aktau, killing 38 people and leaving 29 survivors, a Kazakh official said.