Cutting development fees would add to the financial burden of a city already facing a more than $1-billion budget shortfall, according to the mayor.
Mayor John Tory says the province’s new housing plan could starve Toronto of $200 million in annual revenue, and he’s warning that the cash-strapped city can’t take the financial hit.
According to his office, city staff’s preliminary estimate is the reduction in development charge revenue would cost Toronto $200 million a year. Development charges are one of the few major sources of revenue available Ontario municipalities. Cities levy them against developers when issuing building permits, and use the proceeds to pay for infrastructure required to serve the new builds, like roads, transit, water connections and sewer lines.But the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing estimates the charges and other city fees add an average of $116,900 to the cost of a single-family home in the GTA.
The Ontario government has floated the possibility of using its $1.6-billion share of the federal Housing Accelerator Fund to offset losses cities incur as a result of its housing plan, but nothing is confirmed.