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On Monday, Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government passed the More Homes Built Faster Act.

Though the government, led by Premier Doug Ford, claims the law is intended to spur affordable housing construction, opposition parties and civil society groups have criticized the bill as primarily benefiting real estate developers, exacerbating urban sprawl, degrading energy efficiency standards, and scraping away much-needed municipal revenue.

The law primarily operates by:

Exempting certain classes of development, such as “affordable housing” (defined as being where the “price of the residential unit is no greater than 80 percent of the average purchase price”) or “non-profit housing development”, from development charges;

Curtailing Conservation Authorities’ powers (even more), local municipal regulatory powers, public appeal rights; and

Further centralizing various powers in the Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

The law is notably light, however, on means of improving available residential housing supply in urban areas, such as the City of Toronto (as city staff noted).

Or otherwise addressing the province’s acute housing crisis by means that wouldn’t clearly benefit property developers - like those linked to Ford and primed to benefit from his government’s new Greenbelt development plans.

While some progressive groups acknowledge the bill boasts a few positive provisions, including with respect to densification-friendly zoning regulations, a broad and vocal public coalition regards the law as highly flawed at best.

And, at worst, massively detrimental for both housing and Ontario’s natural environment.

Looking for help with housing and development-related legal matters? Contact us at 647-724-4308 or info@greeneconomylaw.com.