Essex County municipalities eye development charge deals, could spur significant growth

Homebuilding in Windsor, Ont. on Friday, Sept. 24, 2021. (Chris Campbell/CTV Windsor)

A temporary cut to development charges in some Essex County municipalities will help spur significant growth, according to one developer.

Norbert Bolger, the chair of the Windsor Essex Homebuilders’ Association, is applauding municipalities that are looking to cut the fees to secure joint federal and provincial funding.

“We need to spur some growth here,” said Bolger. “Housing has really, really died down tremendously.”

Announced in March, the Canada-Ontario Development Charge Reduction Program seeks to incentivize municipalities to cut the fees in return for funding from an $8.8 billion infrastructure fund.

If selected, development charges must be slashed by 30 per cent to 50 per cent for the next three years.

So far, councils in LaSalle, Lakeshore, and Kingsville have voted in favour of submitting an application for the program.

“So with both provincial and federal governments kicking in the money, it makes perfect sense to do it because then if we get some more housing, obviously, housing brings jobs and brings taxes, and that’s what we need,” said Bolger, the president of the Amherstburg-based Nor-Built Construction.

A slowdown in housing construction was initially caused by high interest rates, which have since been lowered, Bolger noted.

However, the homebuilder noted a shift in U.S. policy following the election of President Donald Trump, and the subsequent economic concerns for Canada have kept construction stalled.

Lower development charges, combined with a recently expanded HST rebate for new homes, could be enough to kick-start the sector.

Development charges often amount to thousands of dollars and are intended to help fund housing-related infrastructure, such as sewer and road servicing.

“We definitely will look back and say, ‘Well, that was a really good idea.’ I have people calling already asking about the development charges,” Bolger noted.

Selected municipalities will receive up to 90 per cent of the eligible costs for specific projects, which are viewed as housing-enabling infrastructure.

Both Amherstburg and Tecumseh are set to hold meetings next week to discuss similar applications.

In the event municipalities are not selected, they will not be forced to continue with the reduction to development charges.

Bolger noted that whether Essex County municipalities are selected could be a “deciding factor” for people considering buying a home.