Opinion – What on Earth Is Going On With Burlington’s Housing Strategy?

In January 2024, Burlington’s council stood shoulder to shoulder with federal ministers to announce a “huge investment” in our city’s housing future: $21 million from Ottawa’s Housing Accelerator Fund. The message was clear. Burlington was cutting red tape. Zoning would be modernized. The city committed to streamlining approvals, implementing Major Transit Station Areas, introducing four units as-of-right, piloting no parking minimums, and launching a Housing Connections Centre. Approvals would move faster. More homes would be built faster.

Then:
Burlington failed to qualify for the Province’s Building Faster Fund. The metric used was housing starts measured through foundations poured. The mayor argued this was unfair because municipalities issue permits but do not build homes. The city also questioned the accuracy of CMHC data and emphasized that multi-residential growth, which dominates Burlington’s pipeline, takes longer to materialize than suburban greenfield units. (For why we missed, see Table 1 below).

Right Now:
The city is proposing a two-year, 100% exemption on residential development charges, hoping that the senior governments will cover the financial impact. Staff estimate that waiving development charges could reduce revenue by between $16 million and $41 million over the two years, with a more conservative estimate closer to $6 million, depending on uptake. In effect, Burlington is prepared to eliminate a key growth funding tool.

But wait:
If your head isn’t already spinning, the city just wrote a letter to the federal and provincial governments, warning that without replacement funding, Burlington cannot sustainably implement a temporary 100% residential Development Charge exemption intended to get shovels in the ground.

What on earth is going on?
That series of events should raise a lot of questions. For starters, how much of the $21 million Federal Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) will we get?

The HAF was meant to remove barriers and accelerate housing delivery? Did we reduce infrastructure barriers? Did Burlington measurably increase housing starts? (See: Table 2). Will we get anything more? If not, why not? If so, how much?

Development Charge – Merry Go Round:
DC exemptions without a sustainable funding plan risk shifting today’s pressures onto taxpayers. The strong powers granted to the mayor were designed to ensure accountability and speed.

Voters in October will have the opportunity to decide if they like Strong Mayor Powers and the effect this has had on their pocketbooks.

Until then, residents are right to ask: What on earth is going on?