Expedited Approval Process…

Expedited Approval Process for Community Service Facility Projects
• Create regulation-making authority to enable a streamlined approvals pathway for prescribed class(es) of “community service facility” projects (public schools K-12, hospitals and long-term care facilities) that support the creation of complete communities.
Exempt Universities from the Planning Act
• Exempt publicly-assisted universities from the Planning Act and planning provisions of the City of Toronto Act, 2006 for university-led student housing projects on- and off-campus.
• Publicly-assisted universities be exempt from the Planning Act for university-led student housing projects on- and off-campus.
• Develop an expedited approval process for community service facility projects where public schools are included as a “community service facility”.

Comments from Durham District School Board:

Given the rate of housing development being proposed through provincial policy and legislation, it would make good sense to exempt school boards from the Planning Act as school construction approvals at the municipal level is often a long process fraught with delays, which in turn, postpone school openings. These lengthy review periods result in construction delays which require Boards such as the Durham District School Board (DDSB) to bus students from new developments outside of their communities instead of having schools in place within 12 months to 18 months of construction funding being approved by the Ministry of Education.

Creating an expedited approvals process for community service facilities such as public schools, would suggest that these community services appear to be a different layer of approvals but still requiring a set amount of time for approvals before being able to proceed with construction – Under the More Homes Built Faster Act municipalities circumvented the shortened approvals timeline put in place by the province through the establishment of mandatory-Consultation” stages. This new approach did not change the length of time it takes for approvals to be issued. Under the proposed legislation, it would appear that DDSB and other school board would be caught in similar processes; whereas, publicly-assisted universities would be able to proceed immediately once all their funding is in place. A similar full exemption is required for schools as well. Schools, as community assets need to be in place before a new community if fully built out but after enough homes are constructed to result in sustainable enrolments. Unlike universities, school boards see growth-related elementary and secondary school pressures annually as is evident in the DDSB’s 5-year Pupil Accommodation Plan which is updated yearly. Parents and families are growing increasingly concerned and upset with students aging out of elementary schools outside of their home communities instead of going to school within walking distance of their homes. Given the school accommodation pressures faced by board as a result of funding and planning approval delays, students are often bussed beyond the next nearest school to their local community.

Eliminating the red tape inherent in the municipal planning approvals process would enable the DDSB to build schools within the same timeline as the homes being granted occupancy. Furthermore, the significant cost of the approval process itself, the fees for obtaining multiple studies and other investigations increases the overall budget for a school building. Eliminating this process would ultimately reduce the cost of building new schools.

DDSB is considered a “growth board” because enrolment continues to increase as a result of new residential development within its jurisdiction of the municipalities of Pickering, Ajax, Whitby and Oshawa and the townships of Uxbridge, Scugog and Brock. Looking at enrolment and available schools system-wide, there is limited space to accommodate the current enrolment growth. This is especially true on the elementary panel, where from October 2018 to October 2023, elementary enrolment increased by 5,606 students with an average utilization of available school space increasing to 106% across the District.

“Use It or Lose It” Tools
Stalled developments can limit a municipality’s progress in meeting provincial housing targets. For example, seven municipalities have reported that 70,000 units have remained inactive for at least two years. Ontario is proposing a new “use it or lose it” tool to enhance and expand a municipality’s ability to address this obstacle and to support the efficient allocation of housing-enabling infrastructure.

Comments from Durham District School Board:

Clarification is needed to understand the impact of such tools if plans of subdivision currently in a municipality’s plan have school sites within them. These school sites would have been identified in the OP. If a development plan is cancelled, is the school site impacted or is there an expectation of a re-development of the impacted land which would continue to give consideration to the need for a school previously identified in the OP.