MARKHAM, ON — March 22, 2023 — Markham City Council approved its Housing Pledge, Housing Pledge with a Promise , as requested by the Province of Ontario. The Province has a goal of achieving 1.5 million new housing units by 2031 and has targeted 44,000 new units for the City of Markham.

Markham Council made a pledge and a promise to Markham residents during today’s Council meeting to be strong advocates for a municipal planning framework to deliver the infrastructure needed to build complete communities and meet Markham’s municipal housing target.

The City of Markham is aligned with the Federal and Provincial governments in addressing the urgent need to build more homes. Markham is committed to ensuring we have an updated municipal planning framework to guide development, coupled with efficient and streamlined processes to facilitate the timely review and approval of development applications and permits. This framework must reflect the principle of growth paying for growth, and not shift the burden of growth to property taxpayers. The City has made and continues to make significant investments in technology and deliver process improvements thanks to Provincial programs such as the Streamline Development Application Fund and the Audit and Accountability Fund.

“I applaud the government’s initiatives to increase the housing supply, streamline the planning process, and support our ongoing partnership to address housing affordability,” said Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti. “While the City of Markham plays a critical role in facilitating the construction of new homes, other partners are integral in reaching our goal and delivering housing. To be successful, more initiatives and partnerships are required between all levels of government, the home building industry and the trades sector to increase the supply of housing. To meet Markham’s housing pledge, the pace of housing construction needs to double which requires accelerated funding from all levels of government to support the delivery of complete communities, including infrastructure, rapid transit, schools, hospitals, social housing and social services. Locally, we need to create our network of community amenities, parks, trails, active transportation and fire protection services.”

The building of more homes is a council priority and in 2020, Mayor Scarpitti hosted the Markham Housing Summit which was attended by both the federal and provincial governments. In 2021, Council endorsed an action plan "Housing Choices: Markham’s Affordable and Rental Housing Strategy”, which identified a complete range of housing and priorities such as inclusionary zoning and incentives for affordable housing. “As a growing and diverse municipality, the City of Markham has a strong interest in ensuring our community has a mix of housing options that support the development of connected and vibrant neighbourhoods,” said Markham Chief Administrative Officer Andy Taylor. “Our mission is to provide service excellence and we are committed to working collaboratively with the development industry, other levels of government and their respective agencies to build more housing."

Mayor Frank Scarpitti and Members of Council with Markham’s Housing Pledge outside Markham Civic Centre.

Additional Information:

• On October 25, 2022, the province released Bill 23, More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022. The Bill received Royal Assent on November 28, 2022.

• Through Bill 23 and the related Housing Supply Action Plan, the province’s goal is to achieve 1.5 million new homes by 2031, 44,000 of which have been targeted for the City of Markham.