Council voted on a full three-year extension of three development incentive programs, which was passed by a 14-7 margin.
Niagara Regional Council was sharply divided on whether to extend housing incentive programs, with costs for taxpayers piling up.
At a Sept. 5 council meeting as a committee of the whole to deal with the budget, regional councillors had to consider whether to extend housing incentive programs for developers into 2025, as next year’s budget proposal is currently in the works.
St. Catharines Mayor Mat Siscoe was a leading advocate of extending the incentives and introduced the motion.
“If we go through with sunsetting these programs, we are reducing them at the single most important time in the country’s history when we need to be incenting people to build housing,” said Siscoe at the Sept. 5 meeting.
There are three specific housing incentive programs that were up for renewal: the Smarter Niagara Incentive Program, Tax Increment Grants and Brownfield Tax Increment Grants. Had they not been renewed they would have expired on Oct. 1.
Siscoe noted that these programs have been integral in getting new housing and other developments going in his hometown of St. Catharines.
“A lot of development has occurred in St. Catharines on old, brownfield contaminated areas that only happen because of the CIP.”
The CIP Siscoe was referring to the St. Catharines Community Improvement Plan, a local incentive program that uses funds from the regional incentive programs in question.
Siscoe says St. Catharines has achieved an extra $400 million in increased assessment since 2004 because of the developments that occurred through these incentive programs, particularly in brownfield areas.
Councillor Diana Huson of Pelham sought to defer Siscoe’s motion to the next council meeting, saying she wanted to understand the budget impact of the program extensions before voting on the actual extensions.
However, staff said that it would be impossible to get that data before the programs’ Oct. 1 expiry date.
Huson then sought to extend the programs until Oct. 31, before which a more fulsome analysis could be presented, rather than immediately supporting a long-term extension.
This short-term delay was defeated by a 13-8 margin.
Council then voted on a full three-year extension, which was passed by a 14-7 margin.
Other councillors clearly disagreed with Siscoe’s perspective and came out against the extensions Siscoe advocated for.
“We cannot afford this,” said Fort Erie Councillor Tim Insinna, who voted against the measure. “I don’t understand this. I’m really puzzled. When it comes time further down the road, remember this people, because it’s going to come and bite us on the ass.”
Insinna opposed voting to extend the incentive programs without knowing the full cost. His comments were echoed by St. Catharines’ Haley Bateman.
Other councillors, such as St. Catharines’ Brian Heit, favoured extending one program (for brownfield developments) but not the others. He therefore did not support the full extension.
Ultimately, all three programs were extended, to the delight of local developers.
Jay Goldberg is the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. He previously served as a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
