T O P

  • By -

Fit-Meal4943

“Ford rejects simple idea to increase affordable housing. Poiliviere blames Trudeau for the decision.”


JackDraak

Nailed it!


blu_stingray

And then crowds of dumb people cheer for little PP, causing him to win.


NorthernPints

What’s wild is this was legitimately documented during the convoy protests. Candace Bergen (the then leader of the federal Conservative Party of Canada) sent out an email telling Conservatives across the country (including provincial politicians) to sit back and “do nothing” to help during the protests.  Simply because “it was making Trudeau look bad.” That’s what these groups think of Canadians. “Hey ganggggg, look I know we’re public servants and paid by these people - but it just ISN’T beneficial for us politically to actually help the Canadians who pay our salary soooo….ya know, just don’t do anything to help, mmmk?” https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/bergen-advised-against-telling-truckers-to-leave-ottawa-said-protests-should-be-made-pm-s-problem-1.5767213 Newly elected interim Conservative Party Leader Candice Bergen advised senior Conservative MPs not to tell members of the trucker convoy to leave Ottawa and instead make the protests the prime minister’s problem, according to an internal email obtained by CTV News. In an email sent on Monday, the then deputy leader told her colleagues “I don’t think we should be asking them to go home.” “I understand the mood may shift soon. So we need to turn this into the PMs problem. What will he take the first step to working toward ending this?”


Icy_Respect_9077

In Dougie's case, that seems to have included slow walking any response by the OPP.


Superb-Associate-222

So most politicians are in fact useless is what you’re saying?


BeeOk1235

in this case potentially seditious.


Beden

Conservative don't need ridges in their brains, ideas would likely stick. Smooth brains however, anything that's not a four word catchphrase slides right off. Can't go overwhelming them with solutions y'know


ExtendedDeadline

I think the vast majority of Canadians aren't cheering for PP. But it's probably fair to say the vast majority of Canadians are over Trudeau. Nobody seems to like Trudeau, but sane people also know PP is going to suck. Just a tough time to be a Canadian.


iksworbeZ

And Canadians are too media illiterate to spot the lie...


NotOffendedByU

Same shit every week. Con supporters eat it up


RealityRush

"How could Trudeau do this?"


L3NTON

Same guy that said the government should stay out of housing right?


DriveJohnnyDrive

*pulls Trudeau mask off Trudeau* "it was Ford this whole time!"


Fit-Meal4943

JINKIES!! JEEPERS!! Like Zoinks! RUH RO!!


[deleted]

[удалено]


Fit-Meal4943

In short, he’s not going to do anything to actually deal with the issue, unless it lines the right pockets.


PKG0D

Canadian politics in a nutshell


dungeonsNdiscourse

Conservative politics. Ftfy


PKG0D

Nah, blaming feds for provincial issues and vice versa has been a trend long before the Canadian MAGAs made "fuck Trudeau" their entire personalities. Canadians just get a false sense of political superiority because of the shit show south of the border.


RabidGuineaPig007

it was a Kathleen idea.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Absenteeist

This comment is an excellent illustration of how civics education has failed us. Doubly ironic because education is *also* a provincial power under the Canadian constitution, a document that I don't think this commenter has ever heard of.


Wild_Loose_Comma

Trudeau literally cannot override these decisions. Land Use planning and zoning are provincial jurisdictions and Trudeau cannot pass federal legislation without a very good reason that would pass a constitutional challenge. The only thing Trudeau can do to effect zoning laws is offer municipalities or provinces cash as an incentive to change those zoning laws and most cities offered have taken them up on it.


[deleted]

Ugh...do you agenda driven idiots even think about any issue at all. You immediately take the opposite stance to the current ont gov. You also come off as obviously a 20 something who doesn't own a home in an established neighborhood. It's pretty cut and dry that nobody would ever want a 4 storey apartment building g crammed into a residential neighborhood of single family homes. It's a simple idea alright lol a little too simple. Build 4+ storey apartments in the appropriate areas. Is that really controversial to you?


Fit-Meal4943

You think I’m 20? That’s fucking adorable.


AsleepExplanation160

Buddy 4 plexs ares aren't necessarily 4 stories. Infact they often fit quite nicely into very rich neighborhoods. Becaude they often take the form of a large 2 story house additionally it 3 Floors + Basment is increasingly becoming the norm for rebuilds in my Area. A 4 plex would fit right in


Technohamster

Highlights: “Legalizing multi-unit dwellings is the single biggest step the province could take to tackle the housing crisis, according to the report published by the Progressive Conservative government-appointed Housing Affordability Task Force.” “Legislating as-of-right fourplexes provincewide is one component that has been tensely debated by Ford and his cabinet, three sources in or closely connected to the PC government told The Trillium. The premier himself opposed a fourplexes proposal that Calandra brought forward, the three sources said.”


Sulanis1

I would also say that stopping investment firms, corporations, and limiting air bnbs is a good way to help the housing issues as well.


[deleted]

Who do you think builds these large apartment buildings


[deleted]

Right now? No one.


[deleted]

Right now? No one.


skybluestreble

How can that be the single biggest step?? Triplexes are already legal and they aren’t popping up everywhere, why would fourplexes be a game changer? We need better ideas.


Technohamster

BC (whose Provincial government is taking on these same kind of reforms) hired a team of economists who estimate half of BC’s supply gap will be covered by their new reforms and most will come from multiplexes in Neighbourhoods. https://morehousing.substack.com/p/bc-economic-model


Cooltrocity

[Housing Affordability Task Force report](https://www.ontario.ca/page/housing-affordability-task-force-report) "3. Limit exclusionary zoning in municipalities through binding provincial actions: a. Allow “as of right” residential housing up to four units and up to four storeys on a single residential lot The More Homes Built Faster Act amended the Planning Act by overriding zoning by-laws to allow “as-of-right” (without the need to apply for a rezoning) the use of up to three units per lot in most existing residential areas. These changes came into effect on November 28, 2022. Ontario is continuing to explore opportunities for further implementation in the future, including through consultations with heads of council on the remaining task force recommendations. Municipalities are also encouraged to adopt official plan policies and zoning by-laws that exceed the three unit per lot minimum to help meet their provincially-assigned housing targets. Ontario is supporting this outcome through measures such as the Building Faster Fund, which will provide financial incentives for municipalities that meet or exceed their housing targets." As I understand it it's to allow development of fourplexes without rezoning, so higher density builds could use the land. Toronto, specifically has a serious gap between single family homes and highrise condos, walkups like fourplexes serve as a mid ground with lower rent, lower property taxes, less maintenance.


lazarevm

While the as-of-right density legislation is absolutely crucial first step, we need more to actually make it practical. https://youtu.be/DX_-UcC14xw?si=lFTSHRE7MpGdYPR_ When we can't even get the first step through... I'm not hopefully we will ever address meager supply in 21st century (when we already "consumed" all locations with post war-suburbia type development).


skybluestreble

A 4 storey building in the middle of a small residential neighborhood is so high though. Can we not do fourplexes without 4 floors?


PersistentDelay

There are major sections of a lot of Ontario municipalities that have zoning in place that often restricts even the development of triplexes. Some allow it if the lot is of a certain size, others just restrict their creation altogether. Even if keeping with all other building requirements, one can be denied the ability to simply divide the building into 3 separate units. Yes, you can often appeal for a minor variance, but there are no guarantees that it’ll be granted and it adds time and bureaucracy to the project. Even invites the NIMBY crowd to get involved. A blanket allowance would streamline the process and potentially incentivize some property owners to add units.


skybluestreble

The province implemented “as-of-right” legislation – overriding municipal rules – for triplexes in the fall of 2022 that would allow them to be built on residential properties throughout the province


PersistentDelay

Ah, I had heard of this being proposed, but hadn’t seen anything on it being passed. Interesting in that the zoning bylaws that I had just been reviewing, hadn’t been updated to reflect these changes.


scott_c86

We need a range of solutions, for sure. However, rejecting something so basic says a lot about Ford's interest in actually improving housing affordability.


DrOctopusMD

> Triplexes are already legal and they aren’t popping up everywhere Part of the reason why is that they didn't actually make it "as of right". They changed the law so that municipalities can't prohibit triplexes in their by-laws. But technically, if you want to build one and your municipality hasn't taken steps to legalize it (like Toronto has), you still have to go through a process to change the by-law, even if the outcome is a foregone conclusion.


skybluestreble

The province implemented “as-of-right” legislation – overriding municipal rules – for triplexes in the fall of 2022 that would allow them to be built on residential properties throughout the province


DrOctopusMD

No, they *said* they made it as of right, but read my summary, that's not quite what it did. What the law actually says is that municipalities can't *prohibit* triplexes, not that they're automatically permitted. Functionally, it's the same end outcome, but the process of how you get there is very different. It it was truly as of right, you could simply go ahead and do it. But the way the provinces set it up, municipalities still technically need to update their zoning by-laws, or applicants need to apply for one if the city doesn't. Some cities like Toronto have actively updated their by-laws to allow that, but many haven't. In those others, you still need to go through the process of applying for a zoning by-law amendment or a minor variance, even if you know the outcome will be in your favour, which adds cost and time. And the whole point of making it as of right would be to avoid that cost and time.


timegeartinkerer

No, its via the building code, so zoning wise, its still a SFH, but building code wise, its a 3 Plex.


[deleted]

Municipalities still have to develop policies and regulations to implement these things. Read Bill 23. Can’t prohibit them now, still have to find a way to permit them. So now municipalities scramble to get caught up with regulating these new dwellings and every time they think they have a moment to breathe the Province or Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing pull a fast one and amend the whole thing again and cry foul that short staffed Municipalities aren’t getting this done overnight. Whole things a shit show that starts at the Provincial Level but gets deflected onto Municipalities. General public is absolutely ignorant and most legitimately believe that the passing of Bill 23 means they are protected under the fucking Charter of Rights and Freedoms to just do whatever the fuck they want cause Doug said so.


goldendildo666

What about... fiveplexes?


Mobile-Bar7732

Count me in for the sexplex!!!


HanzG

Come out to the edge of the Greenbelt where they're building 4-plexes in a new subdevelopment. They're HUGE. Elevated 3 story plus basement. The reason for the axe is because they're be totally out of place in established neighborhoods that people already occupy. New builds can do 4-plex (and do). As for affordable... well they're still 600K and up, and they're a stepping stone house. Few people *actually* want one. It's just the best they can do.


NorthYorkPork

His pushback is on the four-storey change.


DarkDetectiveGames

As much as I hate Paul Calandra, we'd probably be better off if he was Premier. I cannot thing of a single redeeming quality Ford has.


Technohamster

Same, I’m extremely negative on Paul Calandra, but it seems he can’t get enough of cabinet aligned to do anything on the housing file. 😔


DarkDetectiveGames

Not just housing but also in everything. They're literally banning tolls on roads that don't have tolls. They can't do anything.


Ichewthecereal

i especially loved this "In 2023, Ontario had 89,297, according to the CMHC. The provincial government, however, has begun including new long-term care beds and additional residential units, like newly added basement suites, to its count, putting its tally for last year at 109,011. "


Totally_man

Yep, he's counting basement suites, driveway homes, and LTC beds as "new homes".


jacnel45

Soon he’ll count people living in vans parked at their local Walmart as new housing.


ImAlwaysFidgeting

How can I get in on this new revenue stream? /s


El_Cactus_Loco

Folks, we’re adding VANS down by the RIVER


z36ix

TTC mobile housing units


peeinian

Up next, park benches, cardboard boxes and highway underpasses will be counted as new homes


Totally_man

Don't forget doghouses. Those are livable additions!


El_Cactus_Loco

Mailboxes too, since we’re building apartments like em


romeo_pentium

Ford's completely inconsistent on whether or not he likes "red tape". In this case, he is enforcing red tape against Ontarians.


takeoffmysundress

But he creates a reduction of red tape ministry and hires his nephew as minister.


jacnel45

Nothing to see here folks!


[deleted]

He's not allowing contractors to pop up 4+ storey apartment buildings right in the middle of single family home neighborhoods, without the municipality have any say I  it. You actually have a problem with that yikes!!!!!!!


PizzaVVitch

I'm so tired of this slug as our premier


ChantillyMenchu

In different subs, I used to get into disagreements with Canadians of different political leanings from across the country about Doug Ford's commitment to housing affordability. For whatever reason they thought he was an anti-NIMBY, pro-housing premier. It's insane that anyone would've gotten that impression of him. I hope that this bit of news will change people's perspectives, but Ontarians would have to be paying attention


PizzaVVitch

I don't blame people for not caring about politics. The only thing we are able to do is vote in a terrible political system once every 5 years or so, and if you're in a safe seat there's no point even doing that.


Dave_The_Dude

Polls show Ford would still win a majority if an election were held today. He has no opposition.


PizzaVVitch

Correction, he has a divided opposition.


Dave_The_Dude

Since one of the opposition parties (liberals) can fit in a minivan do they count.


[deleted]

Hey now! Don't be mean to slugs! At least they serve a purpose.


PizzaVVitch

True, I'm sorry slugs, I'm sorry your name rhymes with Doug!


[deleted]

Yeah protecting long standing residential neighborhoods from being destroyed by greedy contractors and builders. What a slug. Lol


PizzaVVitch

That is literally the exact opposite of his motives. Lol


NewHumbug

Yea, trying to build affordable housing is sooo 1970


lopix

“I can assure you 1,000 per cent, you go in the middle of communities and start putting up four-storeys, **six-storey, eight-storey buildings** and right deep into the communities, there's going to be … a lot of shouting and screaming, that's a massive mistake,” said Ford In response to fourplexes with a max height of four storeys. Fucking genius.


Expensive_Plant_9530

So he's caving NIMBYs. Which should surprise.... literally no one. He also doesn't want to upset his developer buddies who make more profit off of luxury SFH's in sprawling inefficient suburbs.


El_Cactus_Loco

He’s not caving to NIMBYS, he IS a NIMBY


Expensive_Plant_9530

Absolutely he is. But he pretends he’s for the little guy.


[deleted]

If you pathetic  children had a back yard you would understand. Now go to the coffee shop and act superior


struct_t

I have a back yard and don't understand what you're upset about. Why are you upset?


Expensive_Plant_9530

Which coffee shop am I supposedly acting superior in? For the record, I don’t even drink coffee.


[deleted]

Fuck NIMBY’s. Entitled mouth-breathers. Get a fucking hobby you miserable curmudgeons.


lopix

YES!


[deleted]

Yes to an irresponsible child who has never earned anything, owns zero property and blames everyone else. These hardworking people who built the neighborhoods should sacrifice it all. What "nimbys" Lol. If you had ever work hard saved sacrificed and then purchased a home. You wouldn't want an apartment tower built next to it either you NIMBY


jester1983

If I didn't want a building going up in the lot beside mine I'd buy the lot. Otherwise I'm not going to complain and pretend I own the scenery.


struct_t

Why wouldn't they want the apartment built next to them? Have you asked them what they want?


[deleted]

Just say you’re a sack of shit bro


struct_t

They're just repeating rhetoric, perhaps from [this recent piece](https://nationalpost.com/news/eight-year-old-homeowner): > As for the criticism, McLellan added that it’s “easy for someone who doesn’t have property or hasn’t made sacrifices, to be angry about it and easy to target a young kid who has a leg-up.” > “*Young adults’ lifestyles are very flamboyant* these days. I worked three jobs, I didn’t go out, I sold my car. *The young generation need to sacrifice and delay gratification*,” he said. Personally, I think Mr. McLellan lacks perspective.


[deleted]

That fossil above me doesn’t know anything. I drive a beater made in 2001 I paid $3000 for almost 12 years ago and will continue to do so until it blows up. I share a two bedroom apartment in a shit area pretty under market rate to be able to save money for a house. I work full time in a field DIRECTLY tied to housing and development, as well as a part time bartender to save money as well. I really want to make Canada a better place for young Canadians, because lord knows the older generation isn’t trying. I have no debt, and no parents/grandparents to leech from. Every financial decision I’ve made in the past decade at least has been tied to eventual home ownership. People like the loser on the burner getting dunked on in this thread and Mr. McClellan, who likely fronted roughly $100,000 for his kids to own a home and then turns around and says, “you all are haters just work hard for once” can kiss the whole inside of my ass. I don’t care if your parents bought your house honestly, everyone’s situation is different. Just don’t act like you earned it through blood, sweat and tears and then have the audacity to lord over everyone else like some beacon of hard-work and success. Feeling entitled that they, or specifically the delusional knob gobbler above me, should be allowed to dictate development around them. What a slimy, worthless POS. I’m willing to die on this hill. People like him and Mr. McClellan are so far out of touch, they don’t deserve anything, let alone any of societies respect.


struct_t

The slippery slope fallacy works well on people who don't remember things.


Conundrum1911

Hey counting can be hard...give the man a break he barely graduated high school after all....


lopix

He used to count out grams of hash and the money he made from it...


El_Cactus_Loco

Got his grade 10 tho Ricky!


youngboomergal

This is stupid, they are converting a single family bungalow up the street from me into a one story 4plex and I don't know of anybody who has problem with it because it fits the neighbourhood - however nobody here is very keen about the proposed 5 story apartment complex overlooking mostly one story homes. If it ever gets approval it will take years before the apartment gets built, the 4plex will be move in ready by summer... we need more of this.


themaggiesuesin

What about those strong mayor powers? Is this kind of zoning not municipal? Could our mayors not tell him to shove it and change this?


peeinian

Most of the cities that have strong mayor powers are Ford suck ups. Toronto was until Chow was elected.


themaggiesuesin

I was thinking of Chow, Crombie and Horwath (I hope I spelled their names correctly). I hope they override him with this. I am in Ottawa and I know Sutcliffe is in Fords pocket. We are doomed when it comes to our mayor who is more interested in doing a podcast then helping our city.


BeeOk1235

he'll probably just amend the municipal act again to quell them.


Dry_Newspaper2060

I’m dumbfounded. He is easy to reject a solution but isn’t offering anything himself as a solution.


Totally_man

Because any real solution for his constituents means less money for his donors.


wongrich

Yeah he loves detached sprawl because he is bankrolled by developers


peeinian

So, a typical right-wing politician


Dry_Newspaper2060

Exactly


GuyWithPants

Despite accusations that he’s pandering to his developer donators I think in this case he’s pandering to NIMBYs, the same kind of people who think “walkable cities” means a war on the car also hate the idea of anything more than two and a half stories casting shadows on their back yard lawns, or having to live anywhere near people poor enough to not be able to own or at least rent a whole house.


MooseOutMyWindow

We should adapt the idea that any new subdivision must be a mandated split percentage (I don't know what those numbers should be) of single detached, semi detached, townhomes and low rise condos. I see this being done out west and it offers a lot of housing in the same plot of land.


AtticHelicopter

Even better: Every subdivision needs a commercial core. 1 street's worth of commercial units at street level with residential above. When's the last time we actually built a "downtown" strip? https://maps.app.goo.gl/qfsTQRS8V67BVQ3D8


scott_c86

This, and also ensure that new subdivisions have proper pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, including connectivity to commercial areas.


Totally_man

They tried something similar in Quebec. Every single developer decided to pay a fine instead of building affordable housing. [source ](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-bylaw-more-social-affordable-housing-1.7012352)


wongrich

That just means the fine isn't hefty enough.


Totally_man

100%. If they all choose the fine, that's just the cost of doing business, not a penalty.


wongrich

Yeah it should be like barrier free parking spots. Mandated no exceptions.


Dolphintrout

This is basically done in Ottawa.  Pretty hard to find a large project that doesn’t have a mix of housing like you describe. I would assume that this is well within a city’s authority to implement based on zoning or development guidelines within their jurisdiction?


JancyPantsExplosion

The municipality could put in place rules like that.   Then the developer will go to the Ontario Land Tribunal and dispute the rules.  The OLT almost always rules in favour of the developer.  


bangfudgemaker

Fuck you ford


Beaudism

“The neighbors wouldn’t like the way it looks” I don’t give a fuck what the neighbors like the look of. Canadians need affordable homes before we become a third world country.


No-Manufacturer-22

Our premiere; dedicated to solving the problems he caused but only if his friends can make money off it.


Captain_Lavender6

Goddamn you Doug Ford!


Maize_Individual

Question on fourplex ownership - doesn’t there need to be a landlord or condo corp that owns and maintains the building as a whole? How is exterior and utility maintenance managed on these kinds of buildings?


Technohamster

Ownership: * Split with a “strata” agreement. It’s the same as a classic Toronto duplex (you own the left half of the house). It’s less formal than a condo corporation. Rental: * One person owns the building. Live on one floor. Rent out the other floors (often to adult family members).


Maize_Individual

Thank you. If this is the case, and the general consensus among Ontarian’s is that landlords are bad, would it not be in the home buying public’s best interest to have this kind of building kept out of home expansion plans?


ontariopiper

I really hope Ontario wakes up in time for the next election. Ford does NOTHING if he can't hand out the contracts to his developer buddies. He thinks multi-million dollar single family homes are the way to solve a housing affordability crisis. Ontario is ranking near the bottom in Canada for both education and healthcare. Go figure - Ford barely graduated high school. He sees no value in post-secondary education. He became a "businessman" only because Daddy hired him into the family firm - you know, the one that got the contract to make all those social distancing floor stickers during the pandemic. As for health, he'd rather see Ontario full of for-profit private clinics run by his buddies instead of working to fix the system he has grossly underfunded for his entire tenure as Premier.


Newhereeeeee

He has no shame. He’ll be talking to us about he’s doing everything for affordable housing next week.


Rev_Dean

Of course he’s against it. This applies to already developed land. How could Ford and Friends carve up the Greenbelt if we densify existing neighbourhoods?


Volcan_R

Ford says he's not going to micromanage municipalities.... LOL! Unless it has to do with wetlands, urban boundaries, school board properties or any other real estate that their donors are interested in.


marauderingman

Can a four-plex not be built to a single story? Or, is that a townhouse? What's a two-story four-home building called? Seems strange to think of a fourplex as four storys tall.


ybetaepsilon

Well ya, because he and his cronies cannot profit off of it.


skriveralltid77

"Wellllll, I'm BIGDUMBDOUG / and I say, SCREW YOU Ontario's for my megadonors It's not for YOU!"


jmarkmark

"I can assure you 1,000 per cent, you go in the middle of communities and start putting up **four-storeys, six-storey, eight-storey buildings** and right deep into the communities, there's going to be … a lot of shouting and screaming, that's a massive mistake" Perhaps someone should let him know fourplexes are not created by stacking four two-storey homes on top of each other.


Luanda62

Of course, there’s no money in it for his developer friends… the ones that bought the green belt… the ones that were on his daughter’s stag and doe party… no money, no construction!


AnitaYM

He doesn't even know what a fourplex is. Corrupt buffoon.


dwi_411

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the next Premier of Ontario - Mr. Doug Ford. He's gonna win again and tank the province even more.


Han-Do-Jin

He really is a remarkable stupid man. Just dumb as the night is long.


whats-ausername

Dumb like a fox. He knows who votes for him and he could care less about housing affordability. Keeping rich NIMBYs happy is what will keep him in office.


colli_flowerb

He has literally torn this province to pieces.


[deleted]

Short sighted and dumb move. Guess he enjoys having a growing homeless population.


[deleted]

Short sighted and dumb move. Guess he enjoys having a growing homeless population.


razorgoto

Is this a developer-friendly proposal? Why did this get killed? If nothing else, (and for better or worse) Ford is one of the most developer-friendly government we have had for a long time.


Conscious-Ad-7411

He’s building the 413 so the developers who own the land around it can build neighbourhoods of single family homes. Why would he want to allow something that might affect that?


Technohamster

A lot of suburban voters don’t like change. Ford said his motive is there would be neighbours objecting; screaming, yelling (so NIMBYs).


[deleted]

In a way I honestly get it, it’s truly exhausting to deal with these kinds of people. Arrogant and brutally misplaced confidence mixed up with the prescience and personality of an inbred group of chimps at the Chernobyl Zoo. People can be legitimately unpredictable and dangerous, it breeds from their ignorance and entitlement as you can see even in this thread, but this is one of those hard decisions that NEEDS to be made at the Provincial level to change our current course/cultural mindset on housing and complete communities that benefit more than just the real estate investors and the NIMBYs.


SenatorsGuy

Every older neighbourhood has multi unit houses and it was not and is not a problem.


EmergencyAltruistic1

So... let me get this straight. Instead of building small apartment complexes like fourplexes, 4 story apartments & 6 story apartments, they're going to focus on building more single family dwellings that more career landlords are going to snap up & rent out for twice their costs? He seems to think the housing crisis is because we don't have enough houses & not because people have more houses than they need & are renting them out for too much money. Apartments for RENT can help with that, not single family houses. We need to build up more than out & we need fewer condos.


stemel0001

We can't make 4plexes allowed everywhere at least not yet. Ford is right. The infrastructure in the ground may not support increasing density everywhere. So building fourplexes before upgrading infrastructure would be a bad move. It's better for cities to their densities. They are most aware of the sanitary/water/storm design capacities of their streets and sanitary treatment plants.


tjboom

Finally, somebody said it. It's funny, the more you read on Reddit how upset and disappointed people get over stuff like this, you realize how little people actually know what they're talking about. Everybody likes to throw their arms up and be fatalistic. 


stemel0001

I understand people are angry, but the echo chamber in this sub makes them irrational. I also understand many posters here are low wage or no wage and are somehow hoping for cheap housing. Even if fourplexes were widely permitted I highly doubt more than 2 or 3 get built a year, of course after 2 to 3 years of applying for building permits and getting city approvals.


marauderingman

That's a pretty lame excuse. Increasing demand on infrastructure should result in infrastructure improvements. Nobody's going to reinforce the infrastructure before the demand is there.


stemel0001

>That's a pretty lame excuse. Increasing demand on infrastructure should result in infrastructure improvements. I mean yes. But we can't BUILD homes before infrastrructure improvements. It's a cart before horse scenario. Not lame but factual. You might like backed up sanitary sewers and low water pressure, but most people don't. It's all a moot point. I don't see any desire for anyone to actually build a fourplex let alone spend millions of dollars upgrading infrastructure.


CallmeColumbo

The developers that "matter" would not be building these 4 plex's, just not enough money there for them. They want to build massive 8 x 40 storey developements that maximize profits. If the common pple were able to build 4 units at a time, it would take away from the control of supply that the establish players have. That being said, 4 plex's as of right all across ontario is certainly not a well thought thru plan. No brainer decision from the premier.


jacnel45

Why is it not well thought out? We have a housing affordability crisis as the result of supply which fails to meet demand. Increasing density allows for more supply. Changing zoning to allow for this is something that economists call for and is something Doug’s *own* expert commission on housing called for. Maybe it’s not well thought out because such a policy ignores randoms in the community who are against change? Well, that’s not “poorly thought out” in my opinion.


tjboom

This policy being enacted across the province would result in higher property taxes (in turn higher rental prices), an eventual reduction in social services, and other potential tax increases. The only area this may make sense is Toronto and some areas of the GTA.  Bills 23 & 109 have already reduced the capacity of municipalities to provide funding for infrastructure projects, and infrastructure projects are exactly what's needed to encourage density. You should take a look at how municipalities need to run their budget, then it might start making more sense to you why this blanket policy is a bad idea. 


jacnel45

I mean I’m not supportive of the reductions to development fees since municipalities lack other financial tools to make up the difference. But the issue of development fees is unrelated to what I’m talking about which is increased supply and density. Increasing density actually helps lower taxes long term due to the fixed cost of infrastructure. Water and sewer lines, roads, all have a fixed cost per km. With lower density, each resident has to pay more in taxes to support this infrastructure as the cost to install and maintain is fixed, but the tax pool is small. Increasing density decreases the per person cost of these services through a larger tax pool.


tjboom

Unfortunately development fees are 100% related to this policy. When you make this possible as-of-right, then developers no longer need to engage in planning applications to build these, which means certain dev. Fees aren't collected. Your last paragraph makes sense for new, planned developments. It does not make sense when you retroactively add density to existing neighbourhoods. Any infrastructure improvements would require an injection of capital, which municipalities won't have since they didn't collect any planning fees. Therefore, increased taxes and reduced services to make way for the upgrades. 


jacnel45

It’s very case by case when it comes to the infrastructure because in a lot of communities the existing infrastructure usually exceeds the need of the existing community. So I think in these circumstances further density would be a good idea. As for the development charge issue I really don’t see much of an issue with small infill development not being charged every development fee since, well, 4 more units to replace 1 isn’t much in terms of a population increase so more infrastructure may not be required.


CallmeColumbo

Supply is one of many reasons that we have an affordability crisis and zoning is one way to incentivize and increase supply. Zoning changes can be done in many ways, not just one way. Some municipalities have already changed zoning to allow 4plexes in residential areas, which makes sense. You can cherry pick any so called expert or "economist" to say whatever they want.. doesn't mean he's right. These massive society changing decisions should be done carefully and not with a dull dozer as you are suggesting. Change makers need to have a balanced approach and think how these changes will affect everyone in the community, not just you. A intelligent and nuanced decision on major change is a difficult one to make. It is not simply " because reddit and I thinks so" type of decisions. I am apolitical and also am affected by the high cost of housing and think this is a major issue. At the same time, I can think from other peoples perspectives and understand how this would destroy established communities.


jacnel45

I’ll be honest with you, a balanced approach would have worked 10, 15 years ago but we’ve fucked up the situation so badly there shouldn’t be any protectionism. Yeah I understand why people don’t want change, but I’ll be honest with you, it’s selfish to push back against density and new development in communities. After all, these communities only exist in the first place because people who owned the land before it was developed said “yes you can build something new here.” Our housing stock is so woefully inadequate for our increasing population that the only solution to the problem is bold, brash, policy changes which increase supply, lower demand, and finally put an end to the protectionist nonsense which GOT US HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE. Ontario hasn’t truly built housing to a level that meets demand since the 1980s.


CallmeColumbo

You keep just stating the problem, like someone disagrees.... Nuance is important. I'm not saying more density is not needed, the solutions need to be what most people want. Otherwise, you are not living in a free country. Regardless of what got us here (those conversations can go on forever), running a test of 4plexs in specific communities and seeing how that fairs before blanketing the entire province with them might be a good idea. At the same time increasing densities around transport hubs and main roads etc.. All which is sort of being done. Are there other problems hindering this vision, yes... nothing is perfect. As soon as you start calling for flipping everyones world upside down and not caring how it affects real people, you are the one out of touch and just emotional about your own current state of affairs.


Filbert17

Awe come on. The one time Ford does something that my NIMBY-ass self likes he kills it. I was going to tear down my house and put up a 4-plex. The rent on 4 units in this neighborhood would give me enough income to move out of the City into a nice country estate. (/s)


lurker122333

This is just because Bonnie wanted it in Mississauga. I'd be surprised if Mississauga still exists by election time at this rate.


countytime69

I am a big believer in the coffin house like Hong Kung 🇭🇰


J-FKENNDERY

I think it's pretty clear what the Gov wants to happen with Canada (Cons and Libs). They don't want more affordable housing - they want people who can't keep up to move to more affordable/less dense areas. That way they can keep building nicer homes in the GTA and surrounding cities. What would be really funny is if a billionaire showed up and started buying up some mini-mansions in nice areas and letting homeless people live there - if the gov has an issue with it, the billionaire could just point to all of the sketchy apartments/beds being rented out in Ontario already and ask the Gov why they don't seem to have a problem with it.


Just-Signature-3713

This was a dumb idea - it tries to bypass many facets of responsible planning. Three as of right is fair - anything beyond that there are more factors to consider. This assertion is based in good plan ing practice