One of the reasons why we are seeing more multiplexes in Toronto (smaller infill buildings with less than seven homes) is that the city has waived development charges and parkland dedication fees on this scale of new housing.
This has helped enormously; without these changes, we'd be seeing far fewer of these housing projects being built.
But here's the odd thing about this exemption: if you build even one more home in the same building, the project is now subject to development charges on all of the homes (minus any credits you might receive for existing homes on the site).
Adding a seventh unit shouldn't suddenly trigger hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees for the first six. This makes zero sense:
-
It creates a disincentive to build incrementally more homes on sites that can accommodate them.
-
It creates a bias toward multiplexes (also known as "houseplexes") and away from apartments. The housing type shouldn't matter. We're talking about homes.
-
It perpetuates the "missing middle" problem. Build small or build big enough to shoulder the additional costs and regulatory burden.
If we're waiving DCs on sixplexes, why not at least waive them for the first six homes on every site? Better yet, waive them on even more homes. This is just one specific example of the hurdles I was talking about yesterday .
Note: My understanding is that the City of Toronto is currently looking to remove this DC cliff and implement a universal first-six-free rule.