Weekly newsletter: January 9, 2023
As some of you might know, the Vacant Unit Tax (VUT) was approved by the previous City Council for 2023 (it was part of the 2022 budget, but the extra year was taken to study it and set it up). I’m including that not because I want to pass blame — previous Council’s challenges are now ours — but rather to give a sense of the timeline.
The intention is to return vacant homes to the market to help address the supply side of the housing shortage. While I agree with that in principle, like many of you, I don’t think it’s fair to place the onus on every individual homeowner across the city.
At a December Council meeting, most of my Council colleagues and I voted to request data from this year’s declarations, most notably the cost of running the program versus the amount of funds that are ultimately generated for the affordable housing initiatives as intended, after subtracting the costs.
The information will be presented to us in June, three months after all the data has been received and digested. At this point, we will decide to keep, modify, or cancel the VUT in time for the 2024 budget.
To be frank, I’m doubtful Ottawa has the same vacancy issues as Toronto and Vancouver, cities whose VUT formed the basis of our program. Of course, I could be wrong in doubting what may be reality, but that’s why the above-mentioned data is so important come decision time in June.
Some residents who are unhappy with the program, how it’s administered, or the feeling of government reaching into people’s lives, have suggested it be scrapped immediately; I’m weary of scrapping it immediately.
Coupled with the motion to get all relevant data, we are in an advantageous position with the program in progress to get a true picture of the vacancy situation in our city. More weight is added to decisions based upon hard facts, especially if we want to close the conversation on the matter for a long time.
Resident feedback will also factor in to the decision (at least for me), but the information and experience we will have will be an invaluable contribution to our choice. Time will tell where we go next, but in the meantime, I welcome any comments you may have.
-Wilson