Stephen Dasko

November 4, 2020

Today, General Committee received staff reports from Planning and Building and Corporate Services which examined the impacts of the Government of Ontario’s COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, 2020 (Bill 197) to Mississauga.

As described in the staff reports, the Act contains amendments to several statutes that affect municipal planning, development charges, environmental assessments and transportation infrastructure. Changes to the Planning Act, which replace those previously proposed as part of the More Homes, More Choice Act, 2019 (Bill 108), are significant to Mississauga and come as the result of strong advocacy efforts from Mississauga and other municipalities across the province.

The changes originally proposed in Bill 108 would have significantly reduced the City’s ability to provide adequate park, recreation and library infrastructure to support new development.  The City advocated for a number of changes to Bill 108, and the province largely listened.

“The amendments to the Planning Act in Bill 197 are generally positive for Mississauga and largely a return to the status quo,” said Andrew Whittemore, Commissioner of Planning and Building. “We are pleased to see that the new legislation maintains the existing provisions for parkland dedication, cash-in-lieu payments, and the alternative parkland rates. In addition, the new structure of the Community Benefit Charge provides us with flexibility to fund growth-related capital costs for services such as affordable housing, public art, community services, parking or other Council priorities.

Bill 197 includes changes to the Development Charges Act. Development Charges are fees collected by the City for the development and redevelopment of land. Development Charges are the City’s primary revenue tool for funding growth-related capital costs. This reduces the overall burden on property taxes.

“These amendments come as welcome news during this challenging year as we continue to feel the impacts of COVID-19 on Mississauga’s budget,” said Gary Kent, Commissioner of Corporate Services and Chief Financial Officer. “Changes to the Development Charges Act eliminate the 10 per cent discount to soft services (libraries, parks and recreation). These were previously proposed to be recovered through the Community Benefits Charge and are now fully recoverable through development charges. This moves us closer to the ideal that ‘growth should pay for growth’ but is still not an absolute.”

To implement the CBC, a by-law will need to be developed. It is anticipated that this process will occur in tandem with the City’s update to its Development Charges by-law that is set to commence in early 2021.

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November 4, 2020

Today, Council approved Mississauga’s submission to the Government of Ontario for Phase 2 of the Safe Restart Agreement Funding to help meet municipal operating shortfalls as a result of COVID-19 pressures.

“We are grateful for the initial funding from Phase 1 of the Safe Restart Agreement Funding. That was a step in the right direction,” said Mayor Bonnie Crombie. “We have reviewed our shortfall and the projected pressures we continue to face during this pandemic. As a result, we are requesting additional funding as offered by the province, to meet our City’s operating needs. We are committed to our recovery efforts and diligently doing our homework to ensure Mississauga receives its fair share in funding.”

The City of Mississauga received $46.1 million in Phase 1 Safe Restart Agreement funding: $15 million through the municipal relief stream and $31 million through the transit relief stream.

“We are grateful to both the federal and provincial governments for their COVID-19 relief funding and welcome the opportunity for further assistance going forward. The $46 million goes a long way to offset our deficit  and our anticipated expenses to December 31, 2020. We do not know with precision what November or December will bring in terms of positive or negative financial performance. In the meantime, staff continue to look for ways to help the City financially, including working diligently to secure funding from other levels of government through these types of programs. It is part of our ongoing actions to prepare for the 2021 budget.”

Safe Restart Agreement Funding

Through the Safe Restart Agreement the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario will provide $4 billion to help Ontario municipalities relieve financial pressures created by COVID-19 and to keep transit systems running through municipal and transit relief streams. Through the Safe Restart Agreement with the federal government, $695 million will help municipalities address operating pressures related to the COVID-19 pandemic through the first round of emergency funding, and over $660 million will support transit systems. Up to $695 million in additional operating funding will be available through Phase 2 to eligible municipalities after they have provided the province with information on their estimated COVID-19- related financial pressures.