Bruce County is looking at a new approach to help entice developers to build more affordable housing units within the county.
Warden Luke Charbonneau read the motion at the council meeting on Thursday to consider Tax Increment Equivalent Funding, which was moved by Councillor Chris Peabody and seconded by Charbonneau.
Peabody says that the inspiration for the motion came from a new development that was built in Hanover.
“This motion is intended to speed up the construction of affordable housing, and it’s based on something that the Town of Hanover did, along with Grey County, on the main intersection there,” he commented during council discussions.
The new building has 109 units, with 12 of those units having a tax relief for a five-year period.
Peabody says that if lower-tier municipalities that have a Community Improvement Plan in place, they can work with Bruce County to encourage developers to build affordable housing and be able to access funding through the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
“Right now Brockton and Saugeen Shores are considering these plans, but it would be open to anyone who has a CIP in Bruce County, but we do need the county to also join the lower tiers in promoting that tax relief and it is dependent on each project,” he said. “I’m just looking at the broader vision of encouraging the creation of affordable units.”
Charbonneau explained further that by passing the resolution, it did not force the county’s lower-tier municipalities to take part.
“The power in this rests entirely with the lower tiers, actually, because only the lower tiers can pass Community Improvement Plans, so the county could only participate if the lower tier decided to create a Community Improvement Plan and include tax increment financing in that plan, so it’s really entirely in the control of the lower tiers.”
