Rental Housing Community Improvement Plan

The Corporation of the City of Sault Ste. Marie

P.O. Box 580 ~ 99 Foster Drive ~ Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 5N1

Jerry D. Dolcetti, RPP

Commissioner

Donald B. McConnell, MCIP, RPP

Planning Director

ENGINEERING & PLANNING DEPARTMENT

Planning Division

Tel: (705) 759-5368

Fax: (705) 541-7165

Rental

Housing

Community

Improvement

Plan

June

2014

The intent of the Rental Housing Community Improvement

Plan (CIP) is to increase Sault Ste. Marie’s inventory of

affordable rental accommodations. This will benefit both

local residents and support current initiatives to attract

significant investment to the community.

Application

Form

Table of Contents

Rental Housing Community Improvement Plan ............................................... 2

Project Objectives ............................................................................................... 2

Who is eligible? .............................................................................................. 2

Rental Housing Tax Increment Equivalent Grant ............................................. 3

Additional Grant .................................................................................................. 3

Incentive 1: Assisted Living Facilities ............................................................. 3

Incentive 2: Additional Barrier Free Units....................................................... 3

Administration ..................................................................................................... 4

Application Form ................................................................................................ 5

Rental Housing Community Improvement Plan

The intent of the Rental Housing Community Improvement Plan (CIP) is to

increase Sault Ste. Marie’s inventory of affordable rental accommodation. This

will benefit both local residents and support the current initiatives to attract

newcomers to the community.

Specifically, the CIP permits the use of property tax assistance, including grants,

as an incentive to encourage new investment in rental housing. A grant may be

provided as a direct payment or as a tax credit.

The Rental Housing Community Improvement Project Area is shown on

Schedule “A.” This area includes all vacant and occupied properties zoned to

permit apartment buildings of four or more units.

Project Objectives

The Rental Housing Community Improvement Plan creates a financial incentive

to encourage new rental housing development in Sault Ste. Marie.

The Objectives are:

 To attract significant new investment to Sault Ste. Marie

 To further diversify the range and type of rental accommodation available

 To increase the municipality’s residential tax base

 To encourage the construction of additional “barrier free” accommodation

 To encourage the development of facilities that support “assisted living”

environments

Who is eligible?

To be eligible for the proposed financial incentive described below, the following

criteria must be met:

 The participant’s operation must be located on property located within the

City of Sault Ste. Marie that is zoned to permit apartment buildings and

multiple attached residential buildings in Zoning By-law 2005-150.

 A significant total project investment is required, creating a minimum of

four new rental units.

Eligible program participants include registered owners, assessed owners,

tenants and assignees as identified in Section 28(7) of the Planning Act.

Subject to City Council approval, the following financial incentive tool (the

program) may be used to encourage new development and the rehabilitation of

lands and buildings that meet the eligibility criteria within the Project Area:

Rental Housing Tax Increment Equivalent Grant

The Rental Housing Tax Increment Equivalent Grant Program will provide a grant

to property owners who undertake the development or redevelopment of

properties that result in a reassessment. The determined amount of the grant

would be based upon the incremental increase in the municipal taxes.

A Tax Increment Equivalent Grant (TIEG) is generally delivered as a "pay-as-

you-go" grant - meaning the owner is responsible for the upfront remediation and

redevelopment costs. Each eligible year, the owner must pay the property taxes

owed in full. Afterward, the municipality will provide to the registered owner a

grant equal to a portion of the tax increment.

A TIEG is a favorable incentive with little expense to the City. The subject sites

that are underutilized today make tax a contribution which reflects their current

value. Without an incentive to invest, the situation is unlikely to improve. While

the municipality forgoes the tax increases of redeveloped property in the short-

term, the investment generates economic activity, creates much needed rental

housing, and will possibly revitalize building stock needed to produce a higher

level of taxation.

Grants are equal to a percentage of the municipal tax increment on a declining

rate basis for a maximum 3 year period. When an approved project is complete,

a grant will be paid annually by the City to the eligible applicant following the full

payment of property taxes. In year one, the grant to the approved applicant may

equal 75% percent of the incremented taxes for the subject property. Year one is

defined as the first full calendar year in which taxes are paid after the project has

been completed and reassessed.

Additional Grant

The grant amount for this program shall not exceed 75% of the increase in the

municipal portion of the taxes, decreasing to 50% in year two and 25% in year

three.

The grants also support the inclusion of assisted living facilities and encourage

developments that exceed the minimum requirements for barrier free designs.

Projects that include the following will be eligible for one additional year of

incentive of up to 75% tax grant.

Incentive 1: Assisted Living Facilities

Projects which provide facilities that contribute to an improved assisted living

environment such as additional space for nurses, physiotherapists, social service

agencies or personal support workers will be eligible for up to one additional tax

grant year.

Incentive 2: Additional Barrier Free Units

Projects which exceed the minimum number of barrier free units required under

the Ontario Building Code (The OBC require that 10% of all new residential units

in multi-unit buildings shall be designed to be barrier free).

Both incentive programs may be combined.

The maximum payment schedule for all Rental Housing Tax Grants will be as

follows:

Time

Basic

With Incentive

Year 1

75%

Year 2

50%

75%

Year 3

25%

50%

Year 4

25%

In addition, eligible program participants may apply for cancellation of the

educational portion of property taxes through the Province of Ontario’s

Brownfields Financial Tax Incentives Program (BFTIP). Provision of tax

assistance for the education portion of a property tax increase is subject to

application by the City to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Provision

of the tax assistance for the educational portion of a property tax increase is

limited to those costs associated with remediation.

Administration

Project incentives available under this Community Improvement Plan will be

administered by a committee with representation from the City’s Engineering,

Planning and Finance Departments. Final approval of any assistance is subject

to City Council authorization.

 An application to the City must be received prior to the application for a

building permit for the project to be considered under the program.

 Property taxes must not be in arrears at the time of application.

 If the property is under an assessment appeal, the application will be held

in abeyance until the appeal is resolved.

 Applicants must agree to not file a property tax appeal while receiving a

grant or rebate under this program.

 Outstanding Work Orders and requests to complete from the City’s Fire

Services or Building Services Division and shall be addressed prior to

grant approval.

 Improvements made to the buildings or land shall be made pursuant to a

Building Permit, and constructed in accordance with the Ontario Building

Code and applicable Zoning requirements.

 Should the project fail to meet the eligibility requirements during the

program, the full amount of property taxes including interest will become

due and payable as if no incentives had been approved.

 Approved project incentives are applicable to the registered owner and the

municipal tax assistance portion is assignable to any person to whom such

an owner has assigned the right to receive the incentives such as a tenant

or other assignee.

 This program may be used in combination with any other program

provided that the total amount of assistance provided does not exceed the

eligible costs.

 This program will remain in effect for five years but may be extended by

City Council subject to appropriate review and notice.

Where the program is approved for use, the following conditions apply:

 This program would not exempt property owners from an increase in

municipal taxes due to a general tax rate increase or a change in

assessment for any other reason after the property has been improved.

 The property owner would be responsible for the full payment of the taxes,

after which the City would provide the grant. For the timeframe beyond the

approval period, the owner would be required to pay the full amount of the

taxes with no grant provisions.

 The tax assistance is based upon increases in property taxes as a result

of development and rehabilitation, and is not based on occupancy or

changes in occupancy.

 In mixed-use projects, any tax assistance is limited to the residential

portion of the building.

 The maximum assistance will be calculated based on the difference

between the assessed value of the property prior to the date of the

application for building permit and the assessed value at occupancy.

 The municipal portion of the tax assistance will be calculated after tax

capping calculations have been applied as required by Part 9 of the

Municipal Act.

 If the property is sold, conveyed, assigned or otherwise transferred in

whole or in part before the program lapses no further assistance shall be

given by the City. Nothing in this section prevents the City from entering

into a new agreement with any subsequent owners of the property to

receive the balance of the assistance under this program.

City Council will review this Community Improvement Plan at regular intervals to

ensure that the intent and project objectives are being met. City Council may

discontinue or modify all or part of the program incentives without a formal

amendment to the Community Improvement Plan, provided that the variation

does not exceed the original maximum credit allowed.

If a court of competent jurisdiction declares any section or part of a section of this

by-law to be invalid, such section or part thereof, shall not be construed as

having persuaded or influenced City Council to pass the remainder of the bylaw,

and it is hereby declared that the impugned section shall be severable and

distinct from the remainder of the by-law, and the remainder of the by-law shall

be valid and remain in force.

1. Applicant:

Name:

Address:

Telephone:

Fax:

Email (optional):

2. Registered Owner:

Name:

Address:

Telephone:

Fax:

Email (optional):

Registered Owner’s Signature

(Indicating concurrence with the application) ______________________________________

I have authority to bind the corporation

3. All mail should be directed

to:

Applicant: ☐

Owner: ☐

4. Civic Address of Subject Property:

5. Legal Description:

6. Assessment Roll Number:

7. Is the property in tax arrears?

Yes ☐ No ☐

8. Business Description: (Please provide a brief history of your business, i.e. year

established, change in ownership, description of clients/markets, etc.)

Sault Ste. Marie

Industrial Community Improvement Plan

Municipal Tax Increment Rebate Program

Application Form

9. Project Description: (Please provide in detail the work to be done as part of this

project)

10. Project Benefits: (Please describe the elements of the project, including whether the

project includes any Assisted Living Facilities and/or Additional Barrier free units).

11. Project Investment:

PROJECTED EXPENSES

AMOUNT

FUNDING SOURCES

AMOUNT

Capital Costs

Applicant

Value of land acquisition

Value of site preparation

Value of construction of new

facility/ Upgrading existing building

TOTAL

12. Current Assessed Value of the Property

13. Current Property Taxes

14. Are there any outstanding work orders on this property? If yes, please identify the

Nature of the Work Order(s):

Yes

Fire Code

☐

Building Code

☐

Property Standards

☐

Zoning By-law infractions

☐

Other Municipal By-law

infraction

☐

Please attach copies of existing work orders or enforcement notices to this application, if

applicable.

15. Have you/your company previously applied for a Municipal Tax Increment Rebate

under any other Community Improvement Plan initiative? If yes, please provide details.

16. Required Attachments

Applications will not be reviewed unless all required attachments are received. A copy of each of

the following is required:

 Site plans, elevation drawings, landscape plans illustrating new construction or buildings

to be upgraded

 Interior Floor Plans

 Proof of ownership of property

 All relevant quotes, by a qualified professional, for site preparation, construction, landscaping,

e.c.t.

17. Certification

All information provided is subject to the Municipal Freedom of Information Act and the

Corporation of the City of Sault Ste. Marie’s financial reporting duties.

The Municipal Tax Increment Rebate cannot be applied retroactively to work already done.

The applicant consents to the use of its name and address in connection with any program

funding announcements.

I/We hereby apply for a Municipal Tax Increment Rebate under the Sault Ste. Marie Rental

Housing Community Improvement Plan initiative. I/We agree to abide by the terms and

conditions of the rebate program. I/We understand that the rebate can be reduced or cancelled if

the agreed work is not completed or if contractors/suppliers are not paid. I/We herby certify that

the information given herein is true, correct and complete in every respect and may be verified by

the Corporation of the City of Sault Ste. Marie (the Corporation). If any information provided is or

subsequently becomes untrue, incorrect and/or incomplete, the Corporation may immediately

cancel the rebate and full repayment of any money already advanced, with interest, shall become

due and payable. Any failure on behalf of the Corporation to verify the information provided is not

a waiver of the Corporation’s rights. I/We are not involved in any action or proceeding involving

claim for damage with the Corporation.

________________________________ _________________________________

Signature of Owner or Applicant Date

________________________________ _________________________________

Signature of Owner or Applicant Date

Please submit application to:

Stephen Turco

Planner

Corporation of the City of Sault Ste. Marie

99 Foster Drive, Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada, P6A

5X6

Phone: (705) 759-5279

Fax: (705) 541-7165 Email: s.turco@cityssm.on.ca