Collingwood is considering a change to the new Official Plan to allow four units on a residential property, a move staff says could give the town a better chance of winning some of the $4-billion in federal funds on offer for affordable housing initiatives.
During their regular council meeting on Jan. 8, council voted unanimously in favour of considering a change to the 2023 update of the Official Plan after just approving the plan back in December. The change would allow up to four residential units on municipally serviced residential parcels – up from three permitted in town previously.
“This resolution is essentially intended to better position the Town of Collingwood to compete for the federal Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF),” said the town’s director of planning Summer Valentine in a verbal presentation to councillors.
The Government of Canada announced details about the new Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) on March 17, 2023. The $4-billion fund is meant to support municipalities, with the goal to build 100,000 new homes in Canada by September 2026.
Under the fund, municipalities of more than 10,000 residents are considered large urban municipalities – which includes Collingwood – and are eligible for a piece of the pie. The Town of Collingwood applied for the funding this past August. Town staff indicated at Monday’s meeting they applied for $35 million through the fund.
“Since that time, we have been working with CMHC (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation) staff to improve our standing,” said Valentine. “We are competing with other towns and cities with greater than 10,000 people.”
Valentine said other large municipalities have already received word they had been successful in their applications, including London, Vaughan, Hamilton, Brampton and Kitchener.
“In their review of the remaining applications, the minister is looking for us to go above and beyond the minimum requirements of the planning act,” said Valentine. “Other municipalities have taken steps to pass a similar resolution.”
Through the motion, the town noted that Collingwood’s population increased by 13.8 per cent between 2016 and 2021, faster than the provincial average of 5.8 per cent and the national average of 5.2 per cent during that same time period. Collingwood’s population is forecasted to grow by 67 per cent to 42,690 people by 2051.
“I think it’s very difficult for a municipality the size of Collingwood to compete under the classification of ‘large urban,’” said Coun. Deb Doherty.
Mayor Yvonne Hamlin shared some concerns about the proposal.
“I’m trying to picture our lovely community where every single family home (property) is allowed to have four units on it,” said Hamlin. “We should definitely consult with our community and see what their thoughts are.”
At Monday’s meeting, town staff indicated there will be an opportunity for public comment on the matter prior to council committing to a final decision on the proposal.
Coun. Rob Ring asked for clarification, noting that not every application that came into the town for four units would be automatically approved, and would be dependent on town rules regarding setbacks, access, amenity space and parking.
“It doesn’t mean that every person that puts an application in for four units would be approved,” he said.
At the end of discussion, council voted unanimously in favour of considering the change to the Official Plan pending discussion of details such as setbacks, access, amenity space and parking, which will be forwarded to the County of Simcoe for consideration. The change will also be forwarded to Sean Fraser, federal minister of housing, infrastructure and communities for consideration as part of Collingwood’s grant application.
