Dear Minister Clark, The…

Dear Minister Clark,

The housing crisis that Ontario faces is creating a province that only an ever diminishing minority can afford a buy a home in. This problem is especially pronounced in Toronto and the GTA. Younger Ontarians are being priced out of the local areas they grew up in and although municipalities are making gestures towards increasing supply they are moving far too slowly and their end goals are not nearly ambitious enough. Urgent action by the provincial government is needed to make it simpler and faster to construct missing middle housing.

The action the government has taken through Bill 109, More Homes for Everyone Act, 2022 and past legislation is commendable but more needs to be done. The government has affirmed to using the report of the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force as a roadmap towards future action and I would like to highlight the excellent recommendation contained within the report that would directly and dramatically boost the amount of missing middle construction. I would also like to implore the government to take action swiftly after the June election. Every month that passes more and more families are being priced out of owning a home or affordably renting a home. Enabling and unleashing the missing middle will help address the supply of homes and overtime tame out of control prices. This will make Ontario a province that more people will be able to buy a home in and more broadly signal that the province is open for business.

What are the biggest barriers and delays to diversifying the types of housing built in existing neighbourhoods?

Exclusionary zoning in quickly growing cities creates an immense amount of land where only detached homes can be built. This building type may have made sense fifty years ago but no longer does. The best way to grow a cities population while protecting the environment is to allow more density on existing land. The Task Force recommendations of legalizing four units and four storeys on residential lots as-of-right and 6 to 11 storeys on public transit routes as-of-right would be an important step towards this.

Furthermore, restrictions along public transit routes such as setbacks and step backs severely impact missing middle buildings. Common sense provincial rules should be established to enable buildings up to 6 floors to not have to adhere to such policies. Forcing a building that is only 6 floors high to build floors 3-6 further away from the property line results in lost space and this translates into lost apartments for families. Missing middle buildings should not have to obey the same rules as high rise buildings. Prohibiting angular plane requirements for missing middle forms would be common sense and is urgently needed to enable more projects to move forward.

What further changes to the planning and development process would you suggest to make it easier to support gentle density and build missing middle housing and multigenerational housing, in Ontario?

Development fees are a huge barrier for missing middle buildings. The City of Toronto is considering raising development fees by over forty percent! If a detached home has to pay a development fee of $160,000.00 for 5000 square feet of living space while an apartment building that is also 5000 square feet of living space (but contains 5 separate units) has to pay over $400,000.00 it disincentives developers from constructing smaller apartment buildings (up to 10 units). Of course high rise buildings should have to pay development charges but why are the same standards being applied to smaller apartment buildings (up to 10 units) or small infill development? Waive development charges and parkland cash-in-lieu and charge only modest connection fees for all infill residential projects up to 10 units or for any development where no new material infrastructure will be required. This would encourage missing middle building.

Furthermore, exempting projects with up to 10 units from community consultations and site plan approval is common sense. Projects of this size should be approved at the same speed as a single detached home. This action would work well along with 6 to 11 storey buildings on public transit routes being as-of-right to construct. Cutting this red tape would signal that Ontario is open for business.

Are you aware of innovative approaches to land use planning and community building from other jurisdictions that would help increase the supply of missing middle and multigenerational housing?

Most major European cities are littered with buildings that are only six to eight floors high throughout. These buildings do not have any angular plane requirements and are of a human scale. They create neighbourhoods that are a pleasure to walk through and live in. Building only high rise in cities such as Toronto and Mississauga will not solve the housing crisis alone. Building missing middle needs to be a part of the solution and cities are not working towards enabling this fast enough.

Are there any other changes that would help support opportunities for missing middle and multigenerational housing?

The government has committed to "facilitate more infill and low rise multi-unit housing by exploring opportunities to allow for single means of egress in four to six storey residential buildings, while continuing to protect public health and safety". This is a fantastic step that will modernize Ontario and put the province to the standard that most countries in Europe use. This will enable more missing middle construction and should be enacted as soon as possible.

I would like to thank Minister Clark and Premier Ford for all of the diligent work they have done in attempting to make homes more affordable for all Ontarians. I would like to echo each of the recommendations made by the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force. Municipalities have shown they are not moving fast enough to encourage missing middle housing and therefore the province must take divisive action. Every month that passes the affordability situation gets progressively worse in Ontario's big cities. Missing middle construction can help solve this problem if the province helps to enable it. The government should move to enable missing middle construction by enacting most if not all of the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force recommendations as soon as possible! This will demonstrate that Ontario is open for business and that the government is getting it done!

Thank you!