By: Matt Weinagrden, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Tilbury Times Reporter
Lakeshore Council has approved a new partnership with Windsor Law’s Centre for Cities (C4C) aimed at modernizing the municipality’s planning and development processes. The partnership will play a crucial role in supporting the goals outlined in Lakeshore’s Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) Approved Action Plan.
At the March 25 council meeting, Mayor Tracey Bailey expressed her enthusiasm about the initiative.
“This is an incredible opportunity to innovate and modernize our planning and development processes to speed up approvals and incorporate the voices of residents in determining the future of our communities,” Bailey said.
“The partnership will give our staff, community members, and developers an opportunity to work with an integrated team of professionals who will lend their expertise to fundamentally change how we plan and develop.”
The partnership, which is set to bring together municipal staff and C4C experts, is designed to create effective systems and solutions for addressing the region’s housing challenges.
“We are working together to develop cutting-edge and needed systems solutions to address the housing crisis in our region and elsewhere, and to put development in the hands of the municipality,” said Dr. Anneke Smit, Director of the Centre for Cities.
The partnership comes after Lakeshore received a significant boost in funding. In February, the municipality was awarded a $7+ million grant from the Government of Canada’s Housing Accelerator Fund.
The grant will support nine initiatives, including community design charettes, a review of the Official Plan and Zoning By-law, and the exploration of municipal land use for housing projects.
Additionally, Lakeshore will develop an affordable housing strategy and Community Improvement Plan to offer financial incentives for new housing projects.
University of Windsor President, Dr. Robert Gordon, expressed his excitement about the collaboration.
“As a regionally focused institution, our goal is to build meaningful relationships with all municipalities in Southwestern Ontario. We are thrilled to be moving forward with our MOU with the Municipality of Lakeshore and to see this important C4C-Lakeshore partnership come to fruition as the first collaboration under this new framework,” Gordon said.
The partnership’s initiatives align with Lakeshore’s broader efforts to enhance its infrastructure and housing capacity. Earlier in March, Lakeshore announced the receipt of nearly $37 million from the Canada Housing and Infrastructure Fund (CHIF), earmarked for improvements to the municipality’s water and wastewater infrastructure.
Residents of Lakeshore can expect significant opportunities for community involvement as the municipality plans for the future. Those interested in staying up to date on housing developments in Lakeshore are encouraged to sign up for updates at Lakeshore.ca/Housing.
