The federal and provincial governments are granting Windsor and Tecumseh up to $84.4 million in infrastructure funding, which will lead to reduced development charges – a step that’s expected to lower the cost of building new homes by tens of thousands of dollars.
This funding was announced on Friday in Windsor, with up to $77.6 million allocated for Windsor and $6.8 million for Tecumseh through the Development Charge Reduction Program.
In return, Windsor has pledged to cut residential development charges by 70 percent, while Tecumseh will reduce its charges by 50 percent over three years, starting from March 30, 2026, until March 31, 2029.
According to the province’s news release issued on Friday, these reductions could decrease the cost of constructing a new home by up to $49,452 in Windsor and $18,078 in Tecumseh.
Alongside previously announced HST relief for eligible new homes, potential savings could total as much as $179,452 in Windsor and $148,078 in Tecumseh.
Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack, right, shakes hands with Tecumseh Mayor Gary Mc Namara, centre, while Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens looks on. (Jason Viau/CBC)
Ontario Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack stated that the program aims to address rising homeownership costs.
“We have a housing crisis. But really what we have is a housing affordability crisis,” Flack said during Friday’s announcement.
“So whether it’s housing, whether it’s gas, whether it’s groceries, it really is about affordability.”
Flack pointed out that development charges collected from builders by municipalities have become too high.
“I understand why we have development charges,” he said. “I know why they came into being but they’ve become punitive.”
He added that municipalities can’t keep depending so heavily on those charges for funding infrastructure projects.
Funding for Infrastructure Improvements in Windsor
Windsor’s allocation of $77.6 million will go towards stormwater management and road enhancements like widening key road corridors.
Mayor Drew Dilkens mentioned that this funding will help lower costs for builders while promoting future housing developments.
“This significant transformational investment of $77.6 million from the governments of Ontario and Canada allows us to reduce development charges by 70 percent for the next three years , with direct and significant savings for those developers building and those families looking to create a home in Windsor , ” Dilkens said in a statement.
He explained that these projects would enable thousands of new housing units while also supporting infrastructure needed for Windsor’s upcoming regional hospital.
The Windsor council approved applying for the program back in June , hoping that lowering fees would help revive housing projects stalled due to rising construction costs.
At that time , city staff estimated around 3000 new housing units could be built over three years under this proposal.
Tecumseh Anticipates Over 700 New Homes
The $6.8 million allocated to Tecumseh will aid in constructing roughly one kilometer of major sanitary sewer infrastructure within the Tecumseh Hamlet development area.
Mayor Gary Mc Namara noted that this project could facilitate more than 700 new homes and speed up development by five to eight years.
Tecumseh Mayor Gary Mc Namara said the project could support more than 700 new homes and accelerate development by five to eight years. (Jason Viau/CBC) P >
He stated that additional housing would represent a seven percent increase in the town’s overall supply , providing “homebuyer savings today and.. residential development to help address current shortages in our region.” P >
The governments believe that combining infrastructure investments with construction cost reductions might unlock as many as 19 ,263 new homes. P >
According to provincial data , out of 444 municipalities across Ontario , over 200 currently impose development charges. P >
Alongside announcing funding for both towns , Flack also revealed up t o$105.8 million available under th e Development Charge Reduction Program f or other areas within Essex County. P >
This includes : p >Up to $51.2 million for Essex County.
Up to $25.4 million for the Town of La Salle.
Up to $8.8 million for the Town of Essex.
Up to $11.8 million for the Municipality of Lakeshore.
Up to $8.4 million for Kingsville.
In exchange，the county committed itself to eliminating development fees for all types of houses during 2026 and 2027. p >
It plans to reduce the fees by75%in the year20128%by50%in2019 % & %25in2030.
La Salle has announced its plan to eliminate dev elopment ch arges fo r all forms &nbs pof h ou sing between M arch30th,  ;20XX, an d Mar ch31st, n2029. p >
Essex,Lakeshore, and Kingsville are cutting their deve lopment cha rges b y50 %for all types o f houses during t he same pe riod.</ p >
Source link
