Making it Easier to Build More Housing: Extending Development Charge Incentives to Condominium Multiplexes and Engaging on the Review of the Ontario Building Code

As uptake of Missing Middle housing grows, I recently met with a group of multiplex planners, architects, and builders, along with key City staff, to discuss further operational measures the City could take to make it easier and cheaper to build more housing options in our neighbourhoods. In addition to recommendations in my letter ( PH30.12 - Making It Easier to Build Multiplexes ) adopted by Planning and Housing Committee on May 7, 2026, these recommendations relate to items that emerged from these discussions. Extending Development Charge Incentives to Condominium Multiplexes In July 2025, Council adopted Item MM32.5 - Creating More Affordable Housing Options in Our Neighbourhoods , which increased the maximum number of units on a single lot that may be exempt from development charges to six units in the primary building, plus one additional garden or laneway suite provided it is subject to a Development Charges Deferral Agreement. Through the Laneway and Garden Suite Development Charges Deferral Program, applicants may enter into a Development Charges Deferral Agreement with the City. This agreement defers the development charge owing on the garden or laneway suite for up to 20 years, after which it is fully forgiven. The purpose of this motion is to clarify that new applications to the Laneway and Garden Suite Development Charges Deferral Program are treated consistently, regardless of whether the unit is rental or ownership tenure, provided the lot is not severed. While virtually all garden or laneway suites in the city to date are in rental tenure, there are a limited number of ownership examples as part of a condominiumized multiplex. Much like with high-rise condominiums, multiplex condominiums can create a path for home ownership, and in many cases can represent ideal "starter homes", allowing owners to build equity over time. Ontario Building Code Line-by-Line Review In March 2026, the Ontario government launched a comprehensive line-by-line review of the Ontario Building Code. The purpose of this review is to modernize construction standards, while maintaining safety. The City of Toronto has an interest in conveying recommendations to the panel to support streamlining approvals and providing clarity for designers, builders and other stakeholders engaged in housing construction in Toronto. For example: - in the recent meeting convened by my office with multiplex stakeholders, we discussed how greater clarity in the Ontario Building Code on matters such as non-combustible exterior wall construction would improve predictability, uphold life-safety objectives, and support more efficient approvals and delivery of much needed housing; and - the City has also developed generic compliance options to streamline the approvals process for fire access requirements for Laneway and Garden suites. However, the Province has not yet provided a broader range of fire access options for designers and builders to comply with the Ontario Building Code requirements that apply to these housing types. The line-by-line review also provides an opportunity for the Province to adopt regulations to establish a proactive building condition evaluation program, to compel owners to maintain and regularly inspect their buildings, and consideration of a mechanism that would allow standardized or repeatable Alternative Solutions, where appropriate, to be applied across multiple sites with similar conditions, reducing duplication while maintaining rigorous technical review.

Building engage with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to provide recommendations for consideration by the advisory panel overseeing the Ontario Building Code review on opportunities to streamline the Ontario Building Code.