A new guide was released by the province for business for Land Planning Use, Does the fact that they use the term to describe a CIP as covering “A municipality or an area within a municipality” mean Windsor was already approved?

Some critics continually harp on the fact that surrounding jurisdictions in the region will simply pass plans of their own nullifying Windsor’s city wide CIP.  This criticism falls apart under closer scrutiny. Two obstacles to that are the time it takes to actually complete one of these plans and the cost of it. The city wide CIP plan seems more to level the playing field between a higher taxed city vs. county. As far as time, after Windsor’s plan is approved it would take probably a couple of years for a competing jurisdiction to go through the process. The staff time they’d have to fund would also not be as easily absorbed.  For another jurisdiction to pay for the staff costs to create a CIP and the development charge incentives offered by the CIP they might possibly have to raise taxes whereas Windsor wouldn’t.

However, I think the more important question to ask is regarding the risk associated with our application being rejected by the province. Well it seems as though that risk is diminishing quickly

If our application is too risky and is denied, then we’ve wasted years, hundreds of thousands of dollars of man hours and are years behind in getting any CIP incentives. From what I’ve read in the CIP handbook and the land planning guide by the province seems like we’re going to be approved. If not the province must take some responsibility for encouraging twisting the CIP’s intent to meet the needs of a jurisdiction and then pulling the rug out from us. I’d say that their characterization of a CIP covering an entire municipality justification for us to be pretty upset if rejected.

From the two excerpts below. I conclude that we missed out on the original intended use of CIP’s when our city created 5 and implemented very little Wasting at least a half a million to a million dollars of man hours as well as a helluva lot of volunteer hours.

Again I think this reinforces my belief that the City Wide CIP is a twisting of the original intent on CIP’s. CIP’s that Downtown Windsor Missed out on but may still have value. However, this twisting of the original intent of a CIP is supported by our province and I have seen no provincial candidate or elected official come out and make any negative pronouncement on any city’s imaginative and creative twist.

Whether or not Good or bad will ultimately depend on the results it achieve. I wish us all well.

From the land use planning guide:

COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT

What are CIPs?

A CIP is a plan for the improvement of a community improvement project area. A community improvement project area refers to “a municipality or an area within a municipality, the community improvement of which in the opinion of the council is desirable because of age, dilapidation, overcrowding, faulty arrangement, unsuitability of buildings or for any other environmental, social or community economic development reason”.

Municipalities may designate community improvement project areas by by-law and develop and adopt CIPs, provided their OPs contain related community improvement policies for guidance.  Once adopted, a notice of council’s decision must be provided according to the Planning Act requirements.

After the 20 day appeal period expires, if there is no appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board, the
community improvement plan comes into effect.

How do they contribute to community development?

CIPs may contain grant and/or loan programs to be directed towards the CIP area.  Many of the CIPs currently implemented throughout the province consider local business interests, because of the importance of these areas to local economies.  Targeting CIP grant or loan programs in order to help guide and stimulate community economic development may allow municipal priorities to be addressed and may include:

• Allowing municipalities to provide grants or loans in commercial areas for façade improvement

• Providing incentives for the cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated lands (see Brownfield Redevelopment below)

For further information about CIPs, consult your municipality or access the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing’s Community Improvement Plan Handbook, 2008 at www.ontario.ca/mah

From that 2008 handbook look at this excerpt from the introduction

Community improvement planning was popular in the 1970s and 1980s as a means tosupport and encourage neighbourhood renewal and commercial area improvement. It had become an almost forgotten revitalization tool until growth pressures of the late 1990s led to interest in the development potential of brownfield sites. ………..

Municipalities are now using community improvement plans in more innovative ways.
Community improvement plans are being developed to address growth management challenges, intensification, energy efficiency, mixed-use and transit/bicycle oriented development, accessibility, and the emerging needs of an aging baby-boom generation.

Some municipalities are using community improvement plans as an incentive for encouraging development that meets recognized environmental standards, such as LEED®, while others use them to attract certain kinds of employment uses.

Regional community improvement  plans can facilitate the development of regional infrastructure, including transportation corridors and affordable housing.

From its original use as a process required for provincial downtown revitalization grants, community improvement planning has become a flexible yet powerful tool for significant rehabilitation, development and land-use change.