Latest news with #Flack
Hamilton Spectator
28-06-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
$1.3 billion from province prompts Peel council to cut development charges for Mississauga, Brampton, Caledon after walkout halted earlier vote
Peel Region council has voted to cut development charges in half for a 16-month period in an effort to spur housing construction across Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon. The decision, passed June 26, reduces regional development charges by 50 per cent from July 10, 2025, to Nov. 13, 2026. The goal is to lower upfront costs for developers and accelerate the pace of residential construction amid a housing affordability crisis. The move comes just two weeks after a heated council meeting on June 12, when Brampton and Caledon councillors walked out in protest of a similar proposal — leaving council without quorum and halting the vote. At the time, the motion had been championed by Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish and opposed by Brampton and Caledon leaders, who warned it would jeopardize essential infrastructure projects by stripping away critical funding. Their support this time followed a financial commitment from the Ontario government. In a letter from Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack, addressed to the three mayors and Peel Regional Chair Nando Iannicca, the province committed $1.3 billion via the Building Ontario Fund to offset revenue loss from the development charge reduction. The motion received strong support from members of the developer industry, including developers like Starlight Investments, Emblem Developments and SmartCentres REIT writing to council ahead of the vote to endorse the proposal. SmartCentres REIT said its properties could support up to 20,000 new residential units, but noted that high development charges and economic pressures were making many projects financially unviable. 'This is not a matter of unwillingness; it is a matter of inability,' wrote Allan Scully, executive vice-president of development, in a June 19 letter. 'A meaningful DC reduction is a necessary and timely measure.' The Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD) also welcomed the decision. 'The decision will benefit those looking to call the region home, will support the construction of new homes and encourage much needed starts,' said Justin Sherwood, BILD's senior vice-president of communications. In a post on social media following the vote, Parrish thanked Brampton and Caledon for ultimately supporting the measure and credited the province for helping to move it forward. 'Huge thank you to Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs Robert Flack and to Premier Ford for making this essential step forward to igniting residential building in Mississauga and the Region of Peel,' she wrote on X . 'Huge thanks also to Brampton and Caledon for having faith in Minister Flack.' During the council meeting, Mayor Annette Groves of Caledon also expressed gratitude to the province for stepping in. '$1.3 billion is a big number,' she said. Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown similarly pointed to the provincial commitment as a key turning point. In a July 27 statement, his office said Brown had been in regular contact with Minister Flack and the Premier's Office in the lead-up to the vote, and had requested the province provide its proposals in writing. That written commitment, the statement noted, 'was impactful in achieving a compromise at the regional meeting today.' It added that Brown 'wanted assurances that any concessions to the development industry weren't at the expense of critical regional infrastructure.' In addition to the temporary fee reduction, the motion directs Peel Region to apply for funding through the federal Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund to help offset financial impacts. Regional staff have also been tasked with consulting the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing for clarity on a proposed Peel utility model and reporting back by fall 2026. Council further asked staff to meet with BILD and other stakeholders to explore whether development charge savings could be passed along to homebuyers. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
7NEWS
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
Flack Attack! Star designer's Brunswick Home just listed
One of Melbourne's most creatively imagined homes has hit the market, and it belongs to none other than David Flack, founder of the acclaimed Flack Studio. Flack rose to global design fame following the striking transformation of pop superstar Troye Sivan's Carlton home, which earned him a coveted spot on Architectural Digest's AD100 list in 2022. Since then, he's become the go-to designer for a host of Australian celebrities , including comedian Andy Lee and his fiance Rebecca Harding, who tapped Flack Studio to breathe new life into their crumbling Hawthorn mansion, Ravenswood. He's also collected a string of accolades along the way, from an IDEA (Interior Design Excellence Award) to Vogue Living's Creative of the Year at the VL50. Now, Flack is offering up one of his own, a picture-perfect Victorian terrace at 7 Howard Street, Brunswick. Meticulously reimagined by Flack and his partner Jason Olive, the home blends period charm with bold, contemporary detailing, the kind of work that's become Flack Studio's signature. Inside, the two-bedroom, one-bathroom residence is packed with character and craftsmanship. The original bones of the 1901 cottage remain, think soaring ceilings, exposed brick and beautiful Baltic pine floors, but have been elevated with rich colour, custom textures, and high-impact flourishes. "The house embraces the unique exposed brick walls, original Baltic pine floorboards, and heritage features throughout," Flack told The Design Files. "Our interventions of materials are a balance between warm, natural, and muddy tones, scorched almond, camel, olive, white pepper, accented with punchy glossy red openings and transitions painted." The kitchen is a highlight, where handmade Italian terracotta tiles meet creamy quartzite benchtops and a striking red steel portal connecting to the dining area. A picture window offers a leafy view to the garden, the perfect place to curl up with a book or enjoy a quiet morning coffee. The bathroom is equally considered, layered with blue marble floors, fluted glass, Venetian plaster, and a custom stainless-steel vanity, all gently lit by a handmade sconce. A nearby powder room continues the same moody elegance, complete with polished plaster and subtle metallics. Other features include solar power, hydronic and underfloor heating, air conditioning, wool carpets, high-end hardware, and a lushly landscaped garden, complete with an outdoor shower. A rear laneway provides private parking, but with cafés, trams, Anstey Station, Sydney Road and Lygon Street all within walking distance, you'll barely need a car. With renovation costs soaring, Flack says this home offers something rare: a ready-made, designer-crafted sanctuary. The property is listed with a price guide of $1.4 million to $1.5 million and is set to go under the hammer on Saturday, June 21 at 1:00pm.
Global News
11-06-2025
- Business
- Global News
Ontario has been sitting on housing start data for months, internal docs suggest
A final tally of which Ontario municipalities hit their housing targets and how many fell short last year has been finished since mid-February, according to government documents obtained by Global News, despite the province refusing to release the data for months. For the past two years, the Ford government has set targets for new homes in towns and cities around Ontario, promising them extra cash if they meet those goals. The numbers Ontario uses to assess whether or not cities have hit their goals are made up of new homes, long-term care beds and additional units like basements or garden suites. The government set up a website to show which cities had hit their goals, which were on track and which had failed. Around October 2024, however, with housing starts across the province stuttering, the government stopped updating the tracker. By the spring, the tracker had been removed altogether, with the web page telling users to 'try again later.' Story continues below advertisement The information was first posted by the government to show how close Ontario was to its self-imposed target of 1.5 million homes and the annual goals that came with it. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy While the tracker has appeared abandoned for close to half a year, the government has had 'finalized' data for months. A briefing document prepared for Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Rob Flack in March states the information has been ready since Feb. 15, waiting for his direction on when and how to release it. 'This decision point includes official allocation notice letters to municipalities and data by municipality to publish on the housing tracker,' one line from the document, obtained by Global News using freedom of information laws, states. At a recent news conference, Flack conceded the number of incentive cheques he will hand out to municipalities will be lower this year as housing numbers drop. He promised to release the data soon. 'I can tell you, housing starts are down, we know that,' Flack said at a news conference in Toronto. 'We're going to hand out some nice building faster cheques — not as many and not for as much this year as we did last year,' Flack said. Elsewhere in the same briefing document, civil servants said overall Ontario housing starts in 2024 were down 17 per cent year over year. Story continues below advertisement The government indicated it was still validating parts of the housing start data, which the internal documents state is ready. 'As of February 15, 2025, all housing data has been received and finalized by MMAH staff,' the internal document said. 'Municipalities and AMO are waiting to hear whether they qualify for BFF funding, and if so, how much.' The extra calculations are necessary because, in order to help hit its own housing targets, the Ford government elected to add long-term care beds, basement units and other secondary suites to its housing starts. At the time, Premier Doug Ford and his cabinet passionately defended the idea that a long-term care bed counted as home and said the change wasn't just to boost their starts. Ontario NDP MPP Catherine McKenney urged the government to release the data as soon as possible — and said the government had not made housing a 'priority.' 'If there is data, make it available,' they said. 'Let's not worry about pass or fail, let's worry about moving forward and doing what we need to build the housing we need, for the people who need it and where they need it.'
Global News
06-06-2025
- Business
- Global News
Fewer Ontario cities will hit housing targets amidst ‘major crisis': minister
Ontario's housing minister is conceding that the number of new homes in the province is stuttering and his government won't be able to hand out incentive rewards to many cities for hitting their targets, but says he hopes new legislation will help. On Friday, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Rob Flack accepted that the number of new homes in Ontario was lagging far behind the targets the province set itself, calling the situation 'a major crisis' across Canada. 'I can tell you, housing starts are down, we know that,' Flack said at a news conference in Toronto. The Ford government has set itself a target of 1.5 million new homes by 2031, winning a large majority in the 2022 provincial election under the promise. To meet that target, Ontario needed to see an average of 150,000 new housing starts every year for the decade. Story continues below advertisement The province has yet to get close to that number — and created a funding pot and targets for cities to try and reach the goal. A chunk of $1.2 billion was set aside over three years to be handed out to cities, ranked by their success in building new homes. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Last year, Premier Doug Ford and his then-housing minister toured the province, presenting giant cheques to cities that had achieved their 2023 housing goals. That year, Ontario achieved its lower goal of 110,000 homes by adding 10,000 long-term care beds and 10,000 basement or backyard units to the statistics. Flack indicated that this year, even with beds and basements thrown in, the province wouldn't hit its goal. 'We're going to hand out some nice building faster cheques — not as many and not for as much this year as we did last year,' Flack said. 'That's why we came up with Bill 17 to build the conditions to build more homes, faster.' Data from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation shows housing starts are currently down roughly 35 per cent year-over-year. Bill 17 is Flack's first major piece of housing legislation since becoming the minister in March. Among other changes, it takes aim at development charges, looking to standardize the fees homebuilders pay to municipalities and delay when they have to be handed over, in some cases. Story continues below advertisement Major parts of the legislation were agreed to by a major municipal association and a group representing homebuilders. Flack said he believed the legislation could begin to move the needle. He has said the goal of 1.5 million homes remains his target. 'We know the numbers are down, but if we don't make the changes like we did in Bill 17, we're never going to hit our targets,' he said. The minister also promised to release months-delayed housing data, which will show which cities have hit their targets and how many long-term care beds have been added to boost the headline figure.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Toronto gets $67.2M housing cheque as Ontario housing numbers falter
The Ontario government has awarded Toronto $67.2 million in funding after the city came close to hitting its housing starts target last year — but provincial officials say they'll be handing out fewer such cheques in 2025 as not as many cities are hitting their goals. "You have certain mayors in certain towns and cities that absolutely refuse to build. They aren't building a doghouse," Premier Doug Ford said at a news conference at Toronto City Hall Friday, flanked by Mayor Olivia Chow. "They aren't building a garage, and we all know it. "And then you have great cities, and great mayors like Mayor Chow here that's saying, 'We're going to build, we're going to build as quickly as possible because we need the housing.'" This is the second round of funding from the province's Building Faster Fund, which provides funding to municipalities that hit at least 80 per cent of their provincially designated housing targets. Announced in 2023, it promised to provide $1.2 billion over a three-year period to municipalities that achieve annual targets for new home construction starts. Toronto broke ground on 20,999 new homes last year, the province said in a news release, which works out to be 88 per cent of its 2024 housing target. Though Toronto appears to be on the right track, it's now increasingly unlikely that Ford's government will achieve its stated target of 1.5 million new homes by 2031. The latest Ontario budget forecasts 71,800 housing starts in 2025, followed by 74,800 next year and 82,500 in 2027. WATCH | Fewer homes expected to be built in Ontario this year: There have been 260,000 actual housing starts in the three years since the target was set. So if you add in the projections for 2025 and 2026, the province would only be about one-quarter of the way toward its goal at the end of next year, which is the halfway point of the target timeline. The province distributed only $280 million from the fund in its first year after more than half of Ontario's municipalities failed to hit the housing start targets in 2023. The government hasn't updated its housing start tracker since October 2024. As of that point, nine months through the year, only 11 of 50 municipalities had reached their annual benchmark. When asked by CBC News at Friday's news conference why the provincial government is no longer showing the numbers for what each municipality is building, Housing Minister Rob Flack said that he would "have to get back to you." "Housing starts are down. We know that," Flack said. "There's a crisis, a major crisis in this country. We're going to hand out some nice Building Faster Fund cheques — not as many and not for as much this year as we did last year." Flack went on to say that's why the government introduced Bill 17, which is intended to accelerate permit issuance and streamline zoning rules. It also defers the collection of development charges until occupancy, which the province says will provide greater cash flow flexibility. "We know the numbers are down, but if we don't make the changes like we did in Bill 17, we're never going to hit our targets," Flack said. Speaking at the news conference, Chow said that the provincial funding will help build homes in the city faster. "At the end of the day we have a housing crisis, we need to build, whether through deferring development charges, exempting development charges, building the missing middle," she said. "We need to build, build, build a lot of housing, especially affordable housing."
