Success of inclusionary zoning lies in the right partnerships
Inclusionary zoning is a topic I’ve mentioned regularly in my column over the years. It is a planning tool that some North American jurisdictions use to encourage the building of more affordable housing units in partnership between municipalities, builders and developers.
As policy discussions on the use of this planning tool around the GTA heat up, BILD has recently released a proposed framework to help focus these discussions and achieve successful partnerships.
The basic premise of inclusionary zoning is a partnership between developers, builders and municipalities to encourage the building of affordable housing units that would not otherwise be built. In this partnership model, an equitable agreement is put in place between the building industry and municipalities.
In exchange for building units to sell or rent for below-market rates, builders and developers are provided with incentives or concessions that help offset the costs. If there are no offsets provided, then the additional cost is simply layered onto the project, either driving up the costs of the market rate units or rendering the entire project not economically viable.
The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) supports the use of inclusionary zoning as a planning tool to help enable municipalities to secure affordable housing in new developments. To support discussions about inclusionary zoning across the Greater Toronto Area, starting with the City of Toronto where these discussions are most advanced, we have created a municipal framework for inclusionary zoning partnership.
The objective of the framework is to provide guidance on what can often be a very complex and technical topic, thereby providing all parties with a common platform for achieving success. The framework itself covers four themes, including partnerships, how to set the right parameters, implementation and transition, and operations and maintenance. A copy of the framework is available on BILD’s website.
In a region with a severe housing shortage, addressing affordability and adding housing supply are laudable goals. Using inclusionary zoning to help achieve these goals, especially around major transit stations, will require thoughtful public-private partnerships that don’t add costs for those looking to buy new housing units in planned or new projects, or to ratepayers.
The aim of our municipal framework for inclusionary zoning partnership is to contribute to the discussion and help achieve successful partnerships.