GUELPH POLITICAST #407 - Mike’s Homes

When the Ontario Legislature resumed sitting this week, Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner wasn’t sitting alone as the only Green member. The fact that Aislinn Clancy won handily in Kitchener Centre might be a sign that people are interested in listen to Green ideas, and the Legislature will get a chance to show they they’re listening next week by sending Schreiner's private member's bill to committee and naturally, he thinks they should!

Bill 156, the Homes You Can Afford in Communities You Love Act, changes planning rules province-wide to allow for fourplexes and four story apartments in neighbourhoods and allow for mid-rise buildings ranging from six to 11 stories on transit corridors and main streets. The bill would also let these changes stands by not allowing them to be taken to the Ontario Land Tribunal for review, a process that can delay projects for years. It would be a game changer.

Now, some of this work is being done on the local level, Guelph included. But you’ll hear from Schreiner this week that while these are positive developments, it’s hard to make permanent planning changes one municipality at a time, especially when they can be appealed to the OLT. So doesn’t it make sense to change it province-wide all at the same time? Schreiner is banking on the idea that it does, and this week, he’s going to try and sell it to you on this very podcast. 

Schreiner will talk about his thoughts on how the housing crisis got this bad, the elevator pitch for the bill, and why he thinks it’s a good compromise to create density while maintaining neighbourhood character. We will also talk about municipal politics with planning, and how the bill tries to prevent NIMBYism. He will discuss "sharing the pain", the other factors in housing like labour and the economy, and Schreiner’s expectations for the debate next week. 

So let's talk about Schreiner's bill with the author himself on this week's Guelph Politicast!

You can learn more about Bill 156, the Homes You Can Afford in Communities You Love Act, at the Green Party of Ontario’s website. As you heard, Bill 156 will come up for second reading next Wednesday, February 28, in the Ontario Legislature, which returned to work yesterday for the opening of the winter sitting.

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