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10 - The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday January 10, 2009 www.oakvillebeaver.com Growth must pay its way Continued from page 5 Mentor College Primary Campus - JK to Grade 4 law passed by the Region last spring pushed the figure up to $29,000. In the fall, the Region demanded the extra contribution, arguing it was to cover mandatory exemptions as required in the Province's Development Charges Act and exemptions and discounts the Region gives in its own development charges by-law. Though the provincial act is clear that residential developers must pay the full cost for hard services, it does give exemptions for landowners such as schools and municipal buildings, and that's money the Region wants to recover from residential developers rather than taxpayers. The Region's development charge bylaw gives 30 per cent discounts to some manufacturing, office and warehouse developments, but not to residential developers, though the discount will be phased out starting this year. The contribution, which is a financial agreement made under Section 110 of the Municipal Act of 2001, is a relatively recent financing tool used by municipalities. One of the first to use it was the Town of Milton. In Milton, residential developers in the new part of town pay more than $10,000 in Town-related development charges, $2,000 in education charges and $2,000 `voluntary' contributions to the Town to cover capital costs it says it needs on top of development charges. Carr said the Region has received internal and external legal opinions that the contribution is valid. He warned developers not to challenge it in court. "If we get a challenge on it, nobody goes ahead, everything stops dead," he said. Whether everything stops dead is what the Region will find out this week. But Planning Committee chair John Taylor said even if developers don't request as many allocations as predicted, it doesn't mean the Region would charge lower per-unit costs. It simply means staff will have to draw up a different financial agreement with developers, he said. Besides, the Region has previously issued more than 9,000 allocations to developers that have not been used up, said Taylor, ensuring construction in north Oakville and Milton will continue for the foreseeable future. The Region's hard-line stance is based on Carr's belief that growth in Halton isn't paying for itself. Last year, the Chair argued the Province should either force the developers to once again pay development charges for hospitals, something stopped by Carr's own Mike Harris-led government in 1997, or pony up the money for new and expanded hospitals in the Region itself. The Province made no change to its original schedule for hospital construction in Halton and Carr has dropped the issue, focusing instead on getting developers to pay more for hard service capital costs. Mark Winfield, a professor of environmental studies at York University, agreed with Carr that growth doesn't pay for itself, but not because of new project capital costs. "It's the ongoing operational costs that are the real problem," he said. The Development Charges Act doesn't allow municipalities to charge developers for servicing costs more than 10 years in the future, and that's when things start to break down and require maintenance, he explained. The municipality has no other option, but to raise property taxes or user fees to cover those costs, he added. Full - Day Kindergarten Programme Specialty Teachers for French, Music, Computers, Science, and Phys Ed starting in JK Fully Equipped with Indoor Swimming Pool and Gymnasium Specialty Teachers for French, Music, Computers, Science, and Busing available throughout Oakville Full-Day Kindergarten Programme ENTRANCE ASSESSMENT DURING YOUR VISIT BOOK AN Phys Ed starting in JK Fully Equipped with Indoor Pool, Gymnasium, and Outdoor Education Centre Busing available throughout Mississauga Mentor College Main Campus - Grades 5 to 12