On Thursday, September 24, the Ontario legislature will debate Bill 198, a private member’s bill tabled by NDP MPP Cheri DiNovo that would allow municipalities in Ontario to tackle the Housing crisis currently plaguing Ontario.

If passed, the Bill would amend the Planning Act in order to allow municipalities to require developers to include a set percentage of affordable units in new projects, or to make a comparable financial contribution to affordable housing.

“Developers have a responsibility to the communities they build in”, said Cheri DiNovo, the NDP’s Housing critic. “Allowing Municipal governments to set a minimum requirement for affordable units in new apartments and condominiums is a low-cost way to provide Ontarians with badly needed access to lower-cost housing.”

Inclusionary zoning has been implemented in numerous other jurisdictions, including London UK, Vancouver, and numerous US cities. In the City of Boston, inclusionary zoning has been able to guarantee 1,040 new affordable units and collect $19,500,000 in fees through the years 2000 to 2007.

"Inclusionary housing policies are a practical, effective method to deliver thousands of affordable homes and are already being used by literally hundreds of U.S. municipalities," says Michael Shapcott, Director of Affordable Housing at the Wellesley Institute.

“The McGuinty government says it wants to increase access to affordable housing and yet 130,000 households are on waiting lists, with some waiting as long as 21 years.” said DiNovo. “I hope that they take this Bill seriously, and either pass it, or table their own legislation to allow inclusionary zoning in Ontario,” she concluded.