Written By David Gomez
ADELAIDE METCALFE - Council is moving toward a targeted update of its Community Improvement Plan (CIP), with proposed changes aimed at encouraging industrial investment near Highway 402 and reducing barriers to farm worker housing.
Consultant Jesse McPhail of Public Urbanism presented an overview of the proposed revisions during council’s June 15 meeting, explaining that the review focuses on improving a program first developed in 2022 rather than replacing it entirely.
“We’re calling it a scoped update and not really opening up the entire hood and going through a fully-fledged update,” McPhail said, noting the review concentrates on “newer priorities to better support industrial development and farm worker housing.”
CAO Morgan Calvert said the work stems directly from council’s earlier discussions about strengthening the township’s industrial land strategy and addressing housing for agricultural workers.
One of the main findings was that the existing CIP has seen little participation since its introduction. McPhail said only one application has been approved, prompting a review of whether current incentives remain competitive.
To address that, the proposal recommends creating a new Highway 402 industrial focus area and introducing incentives such as tax increment grants, development charge rebates and planning fee rebates. The grants would target sectors including advanced manufacturing, agri-business and logistics.
The review also recommends establishing a dedicated farm worker housing support program. McPhail said discussions have focused on development charge relief and other incentives to help offset construction costs, adding that comparable programs are largely absent across Ontario.
“I think [this happens] in most communities in Ontario, we actually talked with the Ministry, and they were actually not familiar with any other CIPs that offered this type of incentive,” he said, describing it as “an exciting opportunity to provide sort of a leadership role.”
Councillors supported continuing work on both initiatives while requesting additional information before any final decisions are made. Councillor Andrew Campbell said development charge rebates for farm worker housing should remain a priority, while also encouraging staff to consider how other housing types might fit into the program.
Council also discussed possible tax increment grants for industrial projects, with McPhail suggesting a five-year baseline that could be extended to ten years for projects that meet specific objectives.
The proposed amendments will return to council following further refinement and the statutory public consultation process before an updated Community Improvement Plan is considered for adoption.
