Good Morning Markhamites,
Over the weekend, Yorkregion.com reported that the average home price in Markham is now over $1.3 Million. The price increases are most in attached townhomes and Semi-detached homes. Detached, condo towns and condos continue to see declines in value. In another wild statistic - home prices have almost doubled in the area since 2013.
Speaking of houses, if you haven’t started winter maintenance yet, you might want to get on that.
Today’s edition takes about 6 minutes to read.
Pickering’s Lobbyist registry comes into effect, But why doesn’t Markham have one?
Last week, Pickering’s lobbyist registry came into effect, joining Toronto, Vaughan, Brampton Burlington, and Hamilton as municipalities with a registry for lobbyists. The lobbyist registry is a tool to provide better transparency and accountability in municipal policy decisions, especially given the fallout we’re learning about from the Ford government’s handling of Ontario’s greenbelt over the past few years.
Ray Lai is the Chair of Transparency Markham: a free-to-join ratepayers association working to implement a similar lobbyist registry in Markham. Here’s why he’s pushing for a registry:
“The #1 objection we've heard from city councilors and lawmakers is that "no one wants this" or "all any resident wants is low taxes and windrow snow removal.” Signed petitions can easily be dismissed, so membership in a ratepayer's association is verified proof that residents want and deserve this basic standard of electoral accountability. In light of the numerous ethics investigations provincially and questionable decisions around development, we are far behind other municipalities in understanding how our elected officials are lobbied and influenced. The Ratepayer's Association's sole aim is to prove that Markham Residents DO want transparency, and any type of broad mischaracterization of residents only wanting windrow snow removal OR low taxes is simply an excuse to continue hiding whose pocket they’re in.”
Any Markham citizen over 18 can join the Transparency Markham Ratepayer’s Association at no cost. If you have any questions, head to their website or reach out directly at info@transparencymarkham.ca
Flato Developments granted MZO’s by the province to fast-track development, but not one shovel is in the ground yet.
A report from The Star looked into 28 of the 39 Ministerial Zoning Orders the Ford government has given out to “fast track” new homes and long-term care facilities and has found that development hasn’t started since they were issued.
There are many reasons why developments stall on the MZO projects, but the vast majority come down to city planning and not accounting for due process. Essentially, the provincial government can issue these MZO’s to allow developers the ability to build on a piece of property, but it is still up to municipalities to do the due diligence, which can take years to assess appropriately and action on.
Local example: A series of MZOs were issued to Flato Developments for subdivisions north of Major Mac creeping into Stouffville in 2020. But none of the land is serviced municipally yet by either city with sewer, water, and road access, so no one can issue permits. Developers can spend their money to get their lands serviced, but installation and environmental assessments could still put development back years.
At this point, beyond increasing the value of a particular piece of land, it’s uncertain why these MZO’s were fast-tracked. Even if they get over these municipal issues, with the high cost of housing and a labour shortage, it’s unlikely development will happen anytime soon.
Community notes
CityNews is having a giveaway to win a $100 Angus Glen Gift card.
Have you visited the pop-up dog parks in Markham? The city wants to hear what you think.
What’s Happening in Markham this week
Nov 7th - 7 pm: Council Chambers at City Hall - Development services public meeting for the east side of Bur Oak Avenue in Cornell - Participate here
Nov 9th- 8 pm: Flato Markham Theatre - Classic Albums Live: Fleetwood Mac - Rumors Limited Tickets
Nov 10th - 7:30 pm: Centennial Community Centre - Coburg Cougars at Markham Royals - Tickets are only $15
If you would like to submit your photos of Markham - feel free to follow and tag our Instagram page, and we’ll credit you!
If you’ve got a story pitch, send it to themarkhamite@Substack.com