Fall 2001, Vol

LandLandThe EconomistEconomist

Fall 2001, Vol. 31, No. 3 Hospitality Market Overview . . . . 2 The hotel market, often consid- ered an industry bellwether, has been facing some challenges in recent years. Kitchener-Waterloo Has Seen Significant Growth ...... 4 Kitchener/Waterloo is a key part of Canada’s “Technology Triangle”. Will Lifestyle Centres Come to Canada? ...... 6 Lifestyle Centres are taking the US by storm. Can Canada expect a similar invasion?

President’s Message ...... 7 2001-2002 Council ...... 7 The Legislative Beat ...... 8 Terrorist Hijackings • Economic Statement • Premier Harris to Step Down • Municipal Act • Red Tape News • Oak Ridges Moraine • Smart Growth • Go Transit/GTSB

This Professional Journal is published by the Association of Ontario Land Economists

Administrative Offices: 1235 Bay St. Suite 500 Toronto, Ontario, M5R 3K4 Phone: (416) 934-5166 Fax: (416) 934-5021 Website: www.aole.org Email: [email protected] The Kitchener-Waterloo area has climbed a long way back since the early ‘90s. Keith Hobcraft discusses the area’s significant recovery and growth on page 4. Hospitality Market Overview by Brian Flood and Curtis Gallagher ness, convention and leisure travel funds in the early 1990s. Following have all been curtailed. This factor the improvement in the U.S. market, The hotel market is often viewed as a will have a definite impact on fourth these buyers targeted Canada leading performance indicator quarter 2001, but the longer term seeking undervalued, non- within the real estate industry. impact is still uncertain. performing assets for purposes of Since hotel room rental contracts repositioning. are for one night, compared to the Historic Results longer-term agreements of other Market results for Ontario, outlined In 1997, the Canadian hotel invest- forms of investment real estate, they in Chart 1, provide some perspective ment market was impacted with the tend to feel the impact of any on the market over the past decade. arrival of Real Estate Investment downward shifts in the economy In the period just before this chart Trusts (REITs). The first Canadian almost immediately. begins, strong operating results and Hotel REIT (CHIP) was launched in the availability of both equity and June 1997. After several years of strong growth, debt financing had led to a major Following its success, two other the hotel industry in Canada has building boom in the hotel industry hotel REITs (Legacy and Royal Host) recently begun facing challenges on in the late 1980s. Some markets in entered the market.This gave both several fronts: Ontario saw a 100% increase in private and public hotel buyers • In late 1999, the market began room supply in a 5-year span. to soften as a result of Y2K access to capital — and fuelled an concerns. Then, in late 1989, the economy unprecedented amount of acquisi- • first quarter 2000 saw reduced slipped into recession, resulting in tion activity. business travel. reduced travel and spending just as In mid 1998, however, the capital • In 4th quarter 2000, the many of these new rooms came on markets tightened and many buyers, economy began to weaken. to the market. As a result, between particularly hotel REITs, lost their • 2001 brought the high-tech 1989 and 1992, Ontario’s hotel occu- ability to fund acquisitions. Their meltdown. pancy levels and average daily rates unit prices fell significantly and (ADR) decreased rapidly. Due to the lag effect of development, investment return expectations rose. certain markets are seeing new sup- As the Canadian economy emerged As shown in Charts 2 and 3, the ply enter just as their markets are from recession in 1993-94, the lodg- effect on the market was immediate. declining. ing market was revitalized and prop- Since mid 1998, the level of hotel erties began to return to profitability More recently, the terrorist attacks investment activity has declined through improved operating funda- in New York have had a negative markedly. mentals. The majority of primary impact on the hotel industry as busi- Canadian hotel markets have experi- As of year-to-date June 2001, the vol- Chart 1 enced consistent growth in RevPAR ume of transactions has declined in (Revenue Per Available Room) from excess of 50% over the comparable that period through to 2001. period the previous year. However, Ontario Hotel Results the total number of rooms traded The recovery culminated in a peak was only marginally lower at 2,591 Year % Occupancy ADR occupancy level across the Province representing a decrease of 3.9%. of 70.6% in 1998. The 1999 decline 1990 64.4 $93.25 The average price per room declined was modest, at less than 1.0%. In 1991 56.5 $78.29 to $56,014 compared to $59,300 in 2000, however, the drop in 1992 56.8 $75.61 year-to-date June 2000. 1993 59.1 $77.41 occupancy was more pronounced, 1994 63.8 $76.95 falling almost 2.0%. The majority of transactions were located in secondary markets and 1995 65.4 $80.91 Despite declining occupancy, ADR most involve repositioning opportu- 1996 65.8 $84.54 rose by 8.5% in 1999 and 7.6% in nities. Some major acquisitions 1997 68.5 $90.60 2000 – and continued unabated at have taken place recently by 1998 70.6 $97.38 5.1% in the first six months of 2001. Fairmont (CP) Hotels and Resorts 1999 69.4 $105.69 In comparison, for the period of and Legacy REIT, including the 2000 67.7 $113.70 1991 to 1998, ADR growth was 3.2% Empress Hotel, Chateau Frontenac, on a compound annual basis. Jan-June 2000 64.0 $110.68 the Lombard and Crowne Plaza in Jan-June 2001 62.9 $116.33 Investment Market Winnipeg. (The sales involving the A significant change in the Canadian Frontenac and Empress are not con- hotel investment market was the sidered arms length, however, and Source: Pannell Kerr Forster arrival of U.S.-based opportunity are not included in the charts.)

2 Chart 2 hotels here still lag behind U.S. levels. Hotels in major U.S. cities charge approximately 2 to 3 times the room Hotel Transactions — Canada rates of equivalent hotels in Canada. We expect average room rates to continue to rise at above inflation levels. However, growth in income will moderate. Hotel Investment Outlook In today’s market, acquisitions are usually by hotel owner/operators and most represent a repositioning opportunity, although these types of deals are increasingly difficult to find. With record level earnings, the majority of hotel owners have been content to generate increasing returns on their Source: Colliers International Hotel Realty investments through improved operating performance. With reduced Operating Results Outlook income upside available to buyers, rates of return have In terms of operating results, we are in a period of increased significantly since mid 1998. perceived higher risk since most of the potential gains in occupancy and average rate have been realized. Provided acquisition costs remain below replacement cost, investors will be attracted to the market; however, Many markets are seeing new supply, particularly in the purchasers have become more suburban limited service sector, to capture previously unsatisfied demand. discerning in their search for assets that will give them an adequate return on their investment. For example, there has been significant new supply in areas around Toronto, such as Whitby/Ajax, Richmond Brian Flood, AACI, P.App, PLE, is Executive Managing Hill/Markham and Mississauga. The impetus for this Director, and Curtis Gallagher is Director, Hospitality development was the rapid growth in local industry, Consulting, at Colliers International Realty Advisors Inc. particularly the strength in the technology sector at that time, and the expan- Chart 3 sion of Pearson International Airport. The highway 404/407 area will see five new hotels in 2001-2002. Meadowvale Hotel Transactions — Canada will see four new hotels added to the local market. Year # transactions # rooms Price Ave. $/Room Generally speaking, downtown hotels 1990 29 5,849 $562,986,870 $96,253 are more immune to new supply given 1991 17 1,834 $123,361,700 $67,264 the high cost of construction and time 1992 23 3,809 $174,419,371 $45,791 required to develop a larger high-rise hotel. 1993 46 7,693 $295,583,408 $38,422 1994 47 4,843 $143,660,000 $29,663 In Toronto, despite a healthy economy, development in the downtown area has 1995 67 10,339 $481,759,442 $46,596 been limited. Two former office 1996 75 14,912 $769,552,977 $51,606 buildings were converted in 2000 and 1997 118 24,267 $1,881,056,386 $77,515 another completely retrofitted, adding 1998 175 23,496 $1,332,207,828 $56,700 approximately 800 rooms to the market. 1999 41 4,826 $418,709,400 $86,760 We do not expect much new 2000 48 5,690 $478,390,000 $84,075 development given the general lack of financing available for new projects. Jan-June 2000 26 2,695 $159,815,000 $59,300 Given that occupancy levels in many Jan-June 2001* 12 2,591 $145,132,000 $56,014 markets have stabilized, most income growth is now achieved through rising Source: Colliers International Hotel Realty ADR. Although we have seen strong ADR *The Fairmont Empress (Victoria, B.C.) and Le Chateau Frontenac (Quebec City, Q.C.) were acquired growth, many operators suggest that in a non-arms length transaction by Legacy REIT in February 2001 and have not been included.

3 Kitchener-Waterloo has seen significant growth by Keith Hobcraft • Remarketing of Market Square to include a Call Centre, Sears Outlet The Kitchener/Waterloo conurbation, & Fitness Centre once part of the “Golden Triangle” of a former industrial era, is now a key part • City proposal for new Farmers of Canada’s “Technology Triangle”. Market commercial development at King/Eby, much of the land having This evolution is the result of a well- already been acquired educated population, civic support and, of course, a couple of excellent • Restoration of the Governors House universities. and Gaol as a regional courthouse, to be completed this fall With a population of about 300,000, easy access to major markets and a The City is clearly committed to a local airport, the area has achieved vibrant downtown area, and with the much of the painful shift from older support of its major business and manufacturing uses to services, tech- community groups, appears to be out the first building permits on plans nology, research and cultural activity. successful. approved two years ago; they refused to Local experts say it is well positioned to extend to December 1. The approved ride out the next few quarters. Waterloo Downtown plans included a multi-screen theatre, While Kitchener is known for its long bookstore and library – all of which were Like most municipalities in South- established traditional urban downtown, dropped from the developer’s most western Ontario, Kitchener and Waterloo is a more recently planned recent proposal. Galaxy Theatres has Waterloo experienced a declining real community with a typically more spa- recently opened a new 10-screen cinema estate market from early 1991 to 1994 cious feel. Its “newness” is reflected by in north Waterloo at Conestoga Mall. when the market “bottomed out”. the fact that 75 per cent of all companies During 1995, the local real estate were started after 1970. Residential Development economy began to recover and there Single family residential development One of the biggest projects currently has been significant growth in several has remained strong across the under way in Waterloo is Clarica’s sectors of the market. Kitchener CMA (which includes redevelopment of the Westmount Mall. Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge and Downtown Kitchener First Gulf Development Corporation’s most of the rest of Waterloo Region). A significant part of this upturn can be Townhouse development, which surged witnessed in downtown Kitchener, redevelopment proposal for “Uptown Waterloo” hit a major roadblock this by nearly 40 per cent last year, has stayed where the usual urban fight against the fairly high, and if a couple of large apart- “edge of Town” Big Box development summer. The City Council had setAugust 1 as the deadline for taking ment projects get their footings complet- has taken place. ed before year end, that sector should Notable achievements include: match 2000 as well. • New $3.7 million King An interesting shift in apartment Street Theatre Centre (375 investment has taken place. seats), which opened in Almost 400 rental apartments September were built in 2000. A further • 50,000 sf, four-storey 418± downtown rental units, Childrens Museum, in the together with 524 rental units in former Goudies department the suburbs, are either under store, scheduled for com- construction, or planned. These pletion in 2003 - an inter- are market driven investments, esting recycling of an older by developers realizing the building. potential for profitable rental buildings resulting from low • Manulife Financial’s pur- vacancy, rising rents and low chase and conversion of interest rates. King Centre (now called Manulife Square) to provide Jack Carapella of the Tricar 65,000 sf offices Group, a major investor in Source: CB Richard Ellis Kitchener, Guelph and London,

4 Commercial outlook The insurance industry is the mainstay of the economy. Four of Legislative Canada’s major companies are head- quartered here. Recently, however, Kitchener-Waterloo may have Beat become even better known for its From Page 8 research and development, and its electronics/ computer industries. Graham has stated that preferred SuperBuild projects, for example, must Long a “resource” centre for meet Smart Growth (SG) criteria. Microsoft, (i.e. a source of well qualified staff), the region has The following initiatives are now under established a local high-tech the SG umbrella: five-year review of entrepreneurial culture with the Provincial Policy Statement (on expected long term growth. It has Ontario’s land use policies), seen the rise of internationally Brownfields legislation, Oak Ridges known hi-tech companies such as Moraine, new Development Permit R.I.M. (Research in Motion), Open system and the new Municipal Act. Text, and Pixstream. It is also More targeted provincial and federal becoming known for environmental funding for infrastructure, combined is confident about the upper to high management firms. with new fiscal and legal tools for end rental market. With two projects cities, are emerging as key themes for under way in Kitchener, he points to Office vacancies are at four to nine per future success. the good demand, 0.7 per cent vacancy cent on average, with the technology rates, and relatively light competition and financial services sectors absorb- The Ontario Professional Planners from privately rented condominium ing much of the available space. Retail Institute has responded to this SG units as positives for new rental vacancy rates at the end of 2000 were initiative with a thoughtful paper building investment. in the five to 10 per cent range on entitled Exploring Growth average, characterized by conversion Management Roles in Ontario: Industrial vacancies low of old retail space to office uses in the Learning from ‘Who Does What’ Despite a slowdown in some downtown area, as well as construc- Elsewhere. industrial sectors, development tion of new suburban retail space. Case studies from Baltimore, Portland, activity in Kitchener-Waterloo has Calgary, Cobourg, London and remained brisk. In mid 2002, now that funding from all levels of the public and private Waterloo suggest that an arsenal of Industrial vacancies declined to two sectors seems to be coming into tools, including financial ones, are per cent in 2000, with significant place, the north campus of the critical to implementing growth demand for small and medium-sized University of Waterloo (“Wat Park”) management policies. spaces. Although the vacancy rate is expected to get into high gear as a GO Transit/GTSB increased during the first part of 2001, high-tech development node. This In a radical move that acknowledged this was largely a result of several could ultimately lead to several mil- that municipalitiescannot pay for large single-user facilities coming lion square feet of new high-tech public transit on their own, the onto the market. In mid sized space. Province announced that it would buildings, the vacancy rates also once again contribute a share. The increased marginally – a trend which Throughout 2000, the Kitchener Premier announced that the Province may continue as more speculative CMA enjoyed one of the country’s would contribute $300 million per projects are completed. lowest unemployment rates. While year over 10 years, and his hope is to rates have risen in 2001, the area’s lever the other levels of government Demand for smaller industrial space unemployment remains below the for a two-thirds contribution of the is spurring some speculative con- provincial and national averages. total $9 billion transit plan. struction of high quality industrial multiples. With supply tight, rental Keith Hobcraft. AACI, FRICS, PLE, is The Greater Toronto Services Board rates are staying constant. President of Bosley Farr Associates will be phased out and replaced with a Ltd., and serves on the AOLE Council Smart Growth Council for the Golden Waterloo’s Economic Development as Journal Chair. This article was Horseshoe, comprised of municipal Committee is investigating three key prepared with files from City and private representatives. options for increasing the supply of Management and Appraisals Ltd., industrial land: city purchase of addi- Kitchener, and the City of Kitchener Andy Manahan, PLE, is Development tional land; servicing of land it owns Economic Development Department. Promotion Representative for the in the west end; and exploring closer Universal Workers Union, Local 183. partnerships with the private sector.

5 Will Lifestyle CentrCentreses Come to Canaadda?a? by Frank Clayton and Sameer Patel The newest and hottest retail shopping centre concept to emerge south of the border is the “lifestyle centre”. It’s difficult to open a magazine or attend a conference in the States without finding more tributes to this kind of retail development. It is all a bit reminiscent of what hap- Deer Park, located in is one of many examples of the new Lifestyle pened around the “big box” centre a Centres developing in the United States. decade ago. The modern prototype has not age incomes than their neighbours Given that big box centres went on changed much. Although there are a to the south. The proportion of to become big success stories here a few enclosed lifestyle centres, many wealthy consumers is also lower in few years after the U.S. hype, you of their shops offer external Canada, reflecting a society less might expect the same thing to hap- entrances to maintain convenience. polarized between rich and poor. In pen with lifestyle centres. But be addition, planning policies here dis- Specific Market Niche cautious. These centres have flour- courage large, new, homogeneous The U.S. has a large number of ished south of the border because of upper income communities. a specific set of market factors that upper income suburbs, which are are not common in Canada. not located in close proximity to As a result, there are not as many new regional shopping malls. Lifestyle affluent neighbourhoods that could Defining Lifestyle Centres centres serve this market niche. support a lifestyle centre. Existing At their most basic, lifestyle markets with these qualities already centres represent a very upscale By creating a pleasant environment, have established enclosed malls, such strip plaza shopping environment, they are able to cater to destination as northern Toronto’s Bayview Village usually located within a growing shoppers who view shopping as an Shopping Centre. Furthermore, there high-income suburban market. enjoyable pastime. Alternatively, for are not enough specialty lifestyle They offer convenient access to a that portion of the market that is retailers in Canada that can hold their selection of lifestyle/home décor increasingly time-starved and does own without anchors. retailers and regional mall tenants, not want to navigate through a such as Williams-Sonoma, The regional mall to find one store, Opportunity for Hybrids Bombay Company, and Pottery lifestyle centres provide strip plaza While Canada may not see any true Barn, plus trendy sit-down convenience. lifestyle centres, we do expect to see restaurants. the emergence of hybrid malls in this Emergence of National Lifestyle country. These will incorporate some Architecturally, they often use a lot A big part of the success of lifestyle aspects of lifestyle centres – creating of brick, and are expensively land- centres has been the emergence of more external entrances directly to scaped with trees, flowers, fountains lifestyle retailers on the national shops for convenience, or building and sculptures. Convenient access scene. Retailers such as The Bombay retail pads closer to the main mall by car is critical; typically there are Company and Williams-Sonoma have and creating greater pedestrian links numerous smaller parking lots with developed larger format stores, and between the parking lots and the strong pedestrian connections have discovered that they do not need stores. Hybrid malls also offer possi- between the lots and the centre. to be located in regional malls with ble redevelopment scenarios for some anchor stores, or on busy downtown The first lifestyle centre to be built of the countless community/neigh- streets, to be successful. Furthermore bourhood malls in Canada that are in the U.S. was probably Saddle these retailers are achieving equal or Creek, which opened in 1987 in an experiencing high vacancy rates and better sales in lifestyle centres while are looking to reposition themselves. upscale neighbourhood of Memphis, not having to pay the rising common Tennessee. area maintenance charges in malls. This open-air centre has more than Frank A. Clayton,PhD, is President Canadian Lifestyle Centres? 142,000 sq. ft., tenanted by retailers and Sameer Patel, MA, is Senior Unfortunately, lifestyle centres are such as Restoration Hardware, Research Analyst with Clayton much less likely to flourish in this Banana Republic, and Ann Taylor. Research, a Toronto-based firm of country. Canadians have lower aver- urban and real estate economists.

6 President’s Message

It is an honor to serve as your new Moving forward, I hope to build on any suggestions with respect to the president. During the two years that I the firm financial base that the content of the Journal or if you would have served on council it has been a Association has established over the like to have a paper published. pleasure to work with and meet such a past few years. Council has been suc- diverse group of members who bring cessful in increasing revenue while at Other initiatives include the continual years of expertise to our Association. the same time reducing our operating updating of our presence on the World expenses significantly. In the coming Wide Web. I would particularly like to I would like to take this opportunity to year, we look forward to continuing thank Konrad Koenig who has been thank our past president Dave Sanna the current level of growth in our instrumental in the development of our for his leadership and commitment to membership numbers. website. The website contains the Association over the past year. information about our Association, Dave has spent countless hours com- We plan to present a strong line-up of membership application forms, back puterizing our membership data and dinner speakers, addressing a variety of issues of the Journal and one of the reorganizing our administrative struc- topics related to the land economic most comprehensive ‘links’ pages ture so that I am starting my term as issues facing our membership today. I relating to the real estate industry in president with a ‘clean slate’. look forward to seeing many of you at Canada. Please tell your friends to our next dinner meeting. bookmark www.aole.org and visit it On behalf of our membership I would often. also like to thank retiring council We also plan to continue and strength- members John Lang, Michael Cane, Ian en our successful Journal. Rowena and I wish to once again thank the mem- Brown, and David Gibson for their sup- Keith have been involved for many bership and Council for their support. port over the years as council members years in providing our membership I welcome any comments or sugges- and presidents of our organization. with updates on current provincial leg- tions, and can be contacted at (416) Their contributions have helped build islative initiatives, economic updates, 643-3472 or via e-mail at the AOLE into the respected as well as editorials on a variety of [email protected]. Association that it is today. We wish issues related to land economics. Please them all success for the future. feel free to contact them if you have Michael J. Real, AIMA, PLE

President EDWARD SAJECKI MICHAEL J. REAL 2001-2002 Council Asst. Deputy Minister Realty Tax Consultant Municipal Affairs & Colliers International Journal Education Housing Realty Advisors Inc. KEITH HOBCRAFT BONNIE BOWERMAN 416-585-6600 416-643-3472 Bosley Farr Associates Ltd. Senior Mortgage edward sajecki [email protected] President Underwriter @mah.gov.on.ca Past President 416-486-9997 Sun Life Mortgages DAVID SANNA [email protected] 416-979-6343 ALLAN WINDREM Principal Internet bonnie-bowerman@ Dillon Consulting Ltd. SannaD Property KONRAD KOENIG home.com (Planning Manager) 416-229-4647 Solutions Inc. Realty Services Members at Large 416-282-9155 [email protected] Go Transit CATHERINE HUESTIS [email protected] 416-869-3600 ext. 5340 Senior Consultant, [email protected] Treasurer Realty Tax Services ——————————— EDWARD C. BRUCE Membership Colliers International Vice President ALAN MOTT Realty Advisors Inc. 416- Integris Real Estate Retired 643-3736 Journal editor Counsellors 416-368-6937 catherine.huestis@ ROWENA MOYES 416-979-2023 [email protected] colliers.com Consultant edbruce@ 416-466-9829 Program integrisrealestatea.com [email protected] JOHN BLACKBURN EILEEN OSTROWSKI Taxation Assessment Secretary President Association services W. ELGIN DOUGLAS Derbyshire Consultants CRU Communications Inc. ERIKA CZIKA Real Estate Appraiser Limited 905-508-0005 416-934-5166 416-214-5630 cru-communications@ 905-455-5500 [email protected] [email protected] sympatico.ca [email protected]

7 TheThe LegislativeLegislative BeatBeat

Terrorist Hijackings burden for business, simplify The Fall session of the Ontario and streamline administration Legislature began on Sept. 24 of the retail sales tax system and was devoted to an all-party and alleviate traffic congestion discussion of the tragedies and delays affecting the smooth that occurred in the United delivery of goods and services. States on Sept. 11. Oak Ridges Moraine Premier Mike Harris indicated In a move hailed by environ- that a number of counter- mentalists as “stunning”, the terrorist measures would be Province announced on Nov. 1 taken (the Ontario Provincial that over 90 per cent of the Police was directed to report Moraine would remain essential- back with recommendations). ly undeveloped. Landowners A special fund has been who had hoped to proceed with established to help Ontario development in Richmond Hill families of the victims. and Uxbridge will have the Economic Statement opportunity to develop provin- Provincial representatives have cially-owned lands in the Seaton stressed that the Province’s fiscal situ- by Andy Manahan area of Pickering. ation is in good shape to weather any enhanced taxation, regulatory and Based on inter-ministry public meetings economic downturn that may have licensing authority. User fees, however, to develop a strategy to protect the been exacerbated by the terrorist would be subject to new accountability moraine, four broad land use designa- activities. Finance Minister Jim and process measures so that there is a tions have been created: Flaherty delivered an economic state- relationship to cost recovery. There • natural core area ment on Nov. 6 in which he assured would also be updated rules for • natural linkage Ontarians that a balanced budget municipal debt and investment. If the • countryside and would be maintained for 2001-02 by bill is passed as is, ‘sale of land’ is an • settlement. dipping into a $1 billion reserve. item that could be discussed by Council Rural municipalities east of Toronto Premier Harris to Step Down in a closed meeting. The proposed new such as the Peterborough area will be In a surprise mid-term announce- Act contains 10 municipal “spheres of given greater flexibility to develop in the ment, Mike Harris, advised on influence”. countryside category because they are October 16th that he would resign as The government intends to enter into relatively less economically well off. leader of the Ontario P.C. party. This a memorandum of understanding with will provide ample opportunity for a Smart Growth the Association of Municipalities of The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and leadership convention to be held in Ontario and the municipal sector. the spring of 2002, prior to the next Housing has released Listening to Red Tape News general election likely in 2003. Early Ontario: A Summary of Smart Growth The 13th Red Tape Reduction bill was candidates include Deputy Premier Consultations, based on feedback from passed on June 29. Containing more and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty; 17 regional meetings. An important than 120 legislative amendments identi- Minister of Health Tony Clement; distinction has emerged: in major cen- fied by 15 Ministries, the Government Education Minister Janet Ecker; tres in southern Ontario there is an Efficiency Act, 2001 is intended to help Environment Minister Elizabeth emphasis on managing growth, where- remove barriers to jobs, investment and Witmer; Minister of Municipal Affairs as in northern communities growth growth, while improving service to the & Housing Chris Hodgson and Labour cannot be taken for granted and must public. One amendment makes it an Minister Chris Stockwell. be fostered for a strong economy. offence to give false information to the Municipal Act This underlines an earlier statement by Ministry of the Environment or its agent Brad Graham, executive coordinator of Now that the ‘who does what’ exercise under several environmental statutes. has somewhat clarified the the Smart Growth Secretariat, that a responsibilities of municipalities and Between August and the end of “one size fits all” approach will not the Province, Hon. Chris Hodgson will October, the Red Tape Commission work in Ontario. In all cases, however, grant local governments broader consulted with small businesses in more integrated decision-making is the powers under a new Municipal Act more than 20 communities, primarily key to ensuring that a range of objec- that was introduced on Oct. 18. through local Chambers of Commerce, tives are met — from preserving farm- Innovative municipal service delivery to obtain first-hand information about land to providing affordable housing. would be achieved, for example, by government barriers. Recurring providing municipalities with proposals include: reduce the paper See Legislative Beat page 5