Faced with a housing crisis and a pledge to build 1.5 million homes by 2031, the Ontario government’s own projections indicate they will fall significantly short of the required 100,000 annual starts for the next three years. Compounding this, housing starts are down 30 per cent year-over-year. While factors like the Canada-U.S. trade war and economic uncertainty play a role, the Ford government primarily blames municipal “Red Tape” and development restrictions.
Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack recently announced legislation aimed at reducing red tape by limiting municipal specific building restrictions, increasing infrastructure funding for water and wastewater systems, and allowing development charges to be deferred until a home is completed and occupied. While helpful, this legislation still largely relies on municipalities. The province could do more to directly stimulate development, and reduce its own red tape by tackling the significant issue of land costs.
The high cost of land, often outpacing the price of completed homes, coupled with limited availability, presents a major hurdle to development – including in Eastern Ontario. One way the province can assist is by selling some of its own land back into private ownership.
Infrastructure Ontario (IO), the province’s Crown agency which owns or manages all provincial properties, from urban offices in Toronto to undeveloped land in North Dundas, and vast tracts along the St. Lawrence River, acts as a bureaucratic obstacle to growth. It hinders growth by holding on to valuable land that will significantly contribute to the 1.5 million home target if sold – while also returning areas of agricultural land back into production.
For instance, the St. Lawrence Seaway project in the 1950s saw the province acquire over 25,000 acres through purchases or direct expropriation. While some land was flooded, IO still controls significant undeveloped land in this area – including in South Dundas. Despite 60 years of flood data indicating stable flood plains, excess land remains unused.
Similarly, a 10,000-acre provincial land bank in Edwardsburgh-Cardinal Township, intended for industrial development in the 1950s but never utilized, has been sought by the local government for years, with progress through IO proceeding very slowly.
In these cases, and across thousands of underutilized acres held by IO, selling this land would significantly boost housing and development. Given the historically lower acquisition costs, IO should prioritize facilitating development over seeking current market value; the government shouldn’t profit from prolonged land ownership. Low land costs would lower overall home ownership costs, and assist with rental property development as well.
Clearing red tape at Infrastructure Ontario to facilitate land sales would offer a dual benefit: unlocking long-held land and rebalancing the high cost of land acquisition for housing development. Cutting red tape should begin from within the provincial government starting with IO.
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