Chatham-Kent may be one of the next communities to be granted Strong Mayor Powers.
Premier Doug Ford announced yesterday that the measure would be extended to 21 more municipalities, along with $1.2 billion in incentives to build more housing.
Chatham-Kent’s assigned goal is to create 1100 new homes by 2031.
Provincial officials say municipalities with targets would be given strong mayor powers if their head of council has committed to meeting these targets, in writing, by October 15. These municipalities would then receive Strong Mayor Powers by October 31st and would be eligible for the Building Faster Fund.
Performance will be evaluated by comparing the municipality’s number of housing starts and additional residential units created in a given calendar year against the annual target. Municipalities that are achieving 80 per cent or more of their annual target will be able to access a portion of their allocation. Those that exceed their target will be eligible to receive additional funding. Municipalities that are not achieving at least 80 per cent of their annual target will receive no funding.
Each municipality’s portion of the annual fund will be determined based on their share of the greater provincial housing supply goal, as well as their performance compared to their annual assigned targets.