Latest news with #JaniceGuthrie
CBC
23-06-2025
- Business
- CBC
How Windsor is banking on debt to unlock and expedite east end development
It's something the southwestern Ontario border city has tried to avoid for many years: building up and carrying high levels of debt. Windsor's financial strategy has normally been more of a pay-as-you-go model while keeping debt levels low and paying for projects from reserve funding. The city bucked that trend a few years ago when it spent $49 million to buy land for the NextStar Energy battery factory. More recently, council gave the green light to take on $33 million worth of debt for the neighbouring Banwell Road corridor and E.C. Row Expressway overpass projects. They are currently paused after the discovery of endangered gartersnakes. Aside from the notable flyover, the projects also include another roundabout, widening a stretch of Banwell, extending Wyandotte Street and improving the intersection of Banwell Road at McNorton Street. The province is kicking in nearly $70 million of the overall roughly $110 million total price tag. The shift in financial strategy is intended to keep up with the rapid growth in that area, according to the city's treasurer and commissioner of finance. Ultimately, says Janice Guthrie, the projects will be mainly funded through future building development charges to offset the cost for service. "Now that growth will come, and that growth will pay for the infrastructure services needed in order to expand — but we need the cash now, we need to contract [out], we need to get shovels in the ground," she said. Two-pronged financial approach Guthrie says the two-pronged debt strategy starts with a first step of securing construction financing. "The interest will be paid for by existing development charges." Short-term borrowing will take place while construction is underway. When the projects are complete, the city will reassess where it stands with new development and anticipated revenue coming in from the growth it's seen. The second phase is when the city will determine whether long-term financing is needed for a period of anywhere between 10, 20 or 25 years, according to Guthrie. "None of this debt will be tax levy funded," she added, meaning existing residents won't be on the hook for having to pay for any of it. "This debt will be funded from the new growth and development, the expansion, the unlocking of the area on the east side of the city." 'We like to limit our debt' While it's not new to municipalities, or Windsor, Guthrie says it's something they've tried to avoid. "We like to limit our debt. We like to make sure that we have the cash in the bank and we have the revenue sources identified before we undertake significant road projects." Last week, the city highlighted a stable financial outlook. S&P Global Ratings, a credit rating agency, gave the city an AA+ rating, which indicates low risk with a strong capacity to repay debt. Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens called it a vote of confidence. "Even amidst a climate of uncertainty resulting from threat of tariffs and a trade war with the U.S., we are working diligently to leverage all opportunities in support of a robust local economy, and to navigate the unique challenges that come with unprecedented growth and development in our community," he said in a statement. 'Growth pays for growth' Guthrie says expansion is limited in some areas of the city, including the core, so the east end is one spot they've identified, including Sandwich South for future development. "You may see a bit of this debt financing coming forward with some of our projects, but we will use it where it makes sense and strategically making sure that we limit the effect on existing residents." According to Guthrie, the city's building department has informed administration of a "significant" amount of housing that will take place once the road network is available in the Banwell Road corridor. "Growth pays for growth," she said. "We are very confident that this will attract growth and we will achieve the revenues that we need in order to cover our municipal share of the cost." East Windsor becoming more dense Frazier Fathers says east Windsor is rapidly becoming dense. The local researcher and consultant says as that part of the city continues to sprawl, he has his eyes on other areas like Sandwich South, the Cabana Road and Dougall Avenue corridor, and Tecumseh Road at Walker Road. "A number of high development corridors and nodes that have been identified … all of the major thoroughfares in the city where they want to see intensification," said Fathers. "It would be interesting to see how does that come to play as it goes forward." He also points to projects identified for Huron Church Road, for example, where there could be less truck traffic in the future, as the Gordie Howe bridge opens and gives truckers another option. "As a result of that, maybe the road condition changes and then it's now more suitable for apartment buildings … rather than just commercial." Windsor's west side around the new crossing is another area Fathers says could be unlocked for development. But, he points to Ojibway National Urban Park expected to be officially designated at some point this year. "The area of actual developable land is probably going to be constrained in the west end," said Fathers. Tecumseh Mayor Gary McNamara says he's appreciative of the large east Windsor road projects around Banwell Road — calling them "timely" — and that they significantly benefit his community and its development. The neighbouring town has done its own recent construction work on more southerly parts of Banwell at County Road 42. All of the work is in anticipation of roughly 4,000 residential units being built in the Tecumseh hamlet area over the next several years between the expressway and County Road 42 — across from NextStar. That, McNamara says, could increase the town's population by about 8,800 people. "It is timely," he said. "It is certainly appreciative. It's a significant track of land," he said. "This is not going to happen overnight. And the market is going to dictate in exactly at the breadth of speed that it will happen." While construction has yet to start on the home builds, the mayor says infrastructure work such as sanitary water systems is now underway.
CBC
27-03-2025
- Business
- CBC
Windsor's key strategy to reduce emissions 'too costly' without financial help
City staff in Windsor, Ont., say a low interest loan program homeowners could use to make their house more energy efficient is too expensive for the city to implement. Council told staff in 2018 to create a program that would help 80 per cent of the city's homes become up to 50 per cent more energy efficient by 2041. But a report to council now finds completing the goal of retrofitting 57,200 homes would take 100 years based on uptake in other retrofit programs. The program is pitched in Windsor's Community Energy Plan as the most effective way to cut energy consumption and community-wide greenhouse gas emissions. That's because 21 percent of community-wide emissions are from heating, cooling and powering houses that are on average 20 years older than Ontario's average. But after years of study and design work, senior administration say the Windsor Residential Deep Energy Efficiency Retrofit (R-DEER) program is too expensive to implement and unlikely to achieve the initial target. Windsor's Citizens Environment Alliance says not moving forward with the program would leave the city's climate-action efforts "in shambles." How the program would work The R-DEER plan staff developed would let homeowners borrow between $10,000 and $40,000, depending on the value of their home, to cover energy efficient upgrades with a low interest rate. Some examples of projects the money could be spent on include energy efficient windows and doors, better insulation, and electric vehicle charging stations. Homes would need to be at least 20 years old with a creditworthy homeowner. City staff previously said the average home in Windsor was built in the 1960s and uses 20 per cent more energy than the average home in Ontario. The proposed program would offer energy coaches that would guide people through financing and program options. The city could also offer a grant to pay for energy audits to help owners understand the potential benefits of upgrades while reducing upfront costs. People could use a Local Improvement Charge to pay for the retrofits, which is a loan tied to the property and repaid through property taxes. How much it would cost In the report to council, administration lays out a 10-year funding model aimed at making 80 per cent of Windsor homes 50 per cent more energy efficient. The total cost would be $200-million, with $154-million over those 10 years being loans for work that the city is expected to recover. However, Windsor's city treasurer Janice Guthrie warns the loans would require a partnership with a financial institution and would then be considered debt. "That would really put a stranglehold on anything else we would be wanting to do in terms of capital projects for the city," said Guthrie. "Some of those could be at jeopardy of not being able to move forward." Administrating the plan would require 10 full-time equivalent jobs a few years after launching the program, according to the report to council. Meeting initial goal would take 100 years Staff also write that getting the uptake required to meet the emission and energy consumption targets set by council "will be extremely challenging." "Our findings suggest that accelerating the rate of deep retrofits in Windsor (and Canada) will require substantial investments from federal and provincial governments," wrote a consultant in a market validation study. "Windsor is currently on track to miss the climate targets set out in its Community Energy Plan and will struggle to meet them without further investment in residential deep retrofit incentive programs like Canada Greener Homes." Meeting Windsor's 2041 climate targets would require 80 per cent of homes in the city become more energy efficient, but the market validation study found it's likely it would only see 10 per cent of homes retrofitted using the program in that timeline. The study found there are enough contractors to complete the work in the launch of the program, however, also found the proposed uptake was "overly aggressive, as they overestimated participation when compared with utility and government retrofit programs." "Even if we were to execute the program in its entirety," said commissioner of economic development Jelena Payne. "We would still not be able to meet the targets that have been identified by upper levels of government and city council." Citizens group, councillor want the program implemented Derek Coronado, the executive director of Citizens Environment Alliance Southwestern Ontario, said the program should be supported by council to help people take action in a climate crisis. He said the city has great plans but they need to be acted on to see results "The city has not followed through on the important things of taking climate action seriously and that means implementing the stages of your plan that you need to implement," said Coronado. He said the program, if implemented, would create work for contractors and should be looked at as an economic development tool as well as a way to slow climate change. "Time and time again administration reports have said the most costly aspect of climate change is deferring, delaying or not dealing with climate change up front," said Coronado. "That's exactly what the city has been doing. It's actually kicking the cost down the road." Staff are asking council to receive the report and not implement the program but instead ask the federal government for more money to help cover costs. Coun. Kieran McKenzie chaired the council committee that discussed the report on Wednesday and opposed that motion. He highlighted how the program has been identified by staff as "fundamental to the success" of the city's climate action plans. "We don't have other plans to get closer that I see to achieving our climate change goals," he said. "We often don't make the hard decisions, and this is a hard one."
