Ottawa Home Builders Welcome Federal-Ontario Plan to Cut Municipal Development Charges, Urge City of Ottawa to Move Quickly

 

OTTAWA, ON – June 2, 2026 – The Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association (GOHBA) welcomes yesterday’s announcement by the provincial and federal governments with details on how municipalities can access funds to reduce development charges (DCs).

 

The initiative will see the federal and provincial governments cost-match funding for housing-enabling infrastructure projects to support municipal reductions in DCs.

 

“This is exactly the kind of leadership and partnership needed to address Ontario’s housing supply crisis,” said GOHBA’s Executive Director, Jason Burggraaf. “For years, GOHBA has advocated that government at all levels needs to tackle rising infrastructure costs. This announcement recognizes that reality and provides municipalities with a practical path to reduce those costs while continuing to invest in critical infrastructure.”

 

The Development Charges Reduction Program provides a combined $8.8 billion over 10 years for municipalities that reduce DCs by 30 to 50 per cent and maintain those reductions for three years. A combined federal-provincial contribution funds 90 per cent of the reduction, with the municipality funding the remaining 10 per cent. This builds on the Canada-Ontario Partnership to Build, originally announced in March 2026.

 

Cutting DCs in half in Ottawa would return them to 2016 rates, immediately improving project viability, making housing more affordable and helping to deliver more homes faster.

 

“Over the past two and a half years, DCs in Ottawa have increased more than 30 per cent for new homes inside the greenbelt and more than 25 per cent outside the greenbelt,” said Burggraaf. “We strongly urge the City of Ottawa to move immediately to get funding from the new agreement, cut its DCs, and build the infrastructure that will support new housing supply.

 

“This announcement demonstrates that the federal and provincial governments are doing their part. We look forward to working with the City of Ottawa to ensure this opportunity translates into more homes, more housing choice and improved affordability for Ottawa residents.”

 

GOHBA is committed to working with all levels of government, policymakers, industry stakeholders and communities to get homes built and advance practical, scalable solutions to increase housing supply and affordability for residents in Ottawa and across Ontario, now and into the future.