Oshawa number one in development approval timeline

Oshawa is number one in development approval timelines.

The ranking came in a municipal benchmarking study examining 18 major housing markets across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

Put together by Altus Group and released by the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD), the study examined several factors related to housing affordability in the GTA.

These factors include municipal approval processes and timelines for approvals.

The study also compared approaches municipalities have in place to deal with the approval and development of new housing.

The City of Oshawa ranked first for having the shortest development approval timeline.

The rating reviewed categories such as zoning bylaw amendments, plan of subdivision and plan of condominium and averaged a nine-month approval process for Oshawa.

Overall, Oshawa ranked within the top five municipalities across the GTA.

Oshawa’s overall score was based on three factors: planning features, development charges and related fees, and municipal approval processes.

Earlier this year, the Mayor’s Economic Recovery Task Force identified a streamlined approval process which has aided in supporting local economic recovery efforts, while also continuing to ensure the health and safety of the community.

One example of what the city has done to streamline development approval time is the digitization of Oshawa’s building permit approval process within the Building Services Department.

This initiative was launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to support developers and the construction of new developments, including new housing.

The city has also reported over $280 million in year-to-date residential construction value, which has already well surpassed last year’s total.