Development Charges

• 2025 Development Charges Background Study dated April 23, 2025

• 2022 Development Charges Background Study Office Consolidation
• Report to Council FIN 12-22 re 2022 Development Charges Background Study, Community Benefits Strategy and Parkland Conveyance By-law

The final Report to Council on the 2022 Development Charges Background Study  and By-law 7953/22 were passed at the Council meeting of July 11, 2022. Development Charges rates presented in Schedule "C" and "D" in By-law 7953/22 approved to be effective July 12, 2022. 

January 1, 2020 Changes to the Development Charges Act (DCA)

Please refer to Report to Council FIN 09-20 for information pertaining to the changes to the DCA, and the related DC Interest Policy.

Bill 23 established that the maximum interest rate is to be prime plus 1% (section 26.3 of DCA). These rates are reflected in the table below, and FIN 09-20 will be revised to include the maximum legislated interest rates.

Interest Rate

Section 26.2 of the DCA prescribes that the total amount of a development charge (DC) is determined based on the day of application for an approval of a site plan development or the day an application for a zoning amendment to a By-law. As a result, the municipality may charge interest on the DC from the date of application to the date the DC is payable.

The interest rate to apply is as follows:

Application Date and Interest Rate
January 1 - June 30, 2020    3.75%
July 1 - December 31, 2020  2.25%
January 1 - June 30, 2021    2.25%
July 1 - December 31, 2021  2.25%
January 1 - June 30, 2022    2.25%
July 1 - December 31, 2022  2.00%
January 1 - June 30, 2023     4.25%

July 1 - December 31, 2023  5.50%

January 1 - June 30, 2024    6.0%

July 1 - December 31, 2024  6.0%

Exception to Interest Calculation

There will be no interest calculation in the following situations:

Two-year time lapsed from the application approval date to building permit issuance date, on which the DC rates in effect are the rates at the time the building permit is issued;

or

In the absence of site plan or zoning by-law application, DC rates in effect are the rates at the time the building permit is issued. 

For additional information, please view the June 2024 Council Report re Development Charges Reserve Fund - 2023 Statement of the Treasurer for the Year Ended December 31, 2023.

Community benefit charges is the responsibility of City Development staff. All queries should be directed to Paul Wirch in City Development.

2025 Community Benefits Charge Strategy

In 2020, changes to the Planning Act, replaced the former density and height bonusing provisions with a new financial tool, called a Community Benefits Charge (CBC).  Any municipality in Ontario can create and collect a CBC from new buildings that are a minimum of five storeys high and have 10 or more residential units. The rate cannot exceed 4 per cent of the property’s land value on the day before a building permit is issued.

The following developments are exempt from CBCs:

• Long-term care homes
• Retirement homes
• Universities, colleges and Indigenous Institutes
• Memorial homes, clubhouses or athletic grounds of the Royal Canadian Legion
• Hospices
• Non-profit housing

A CBC is a financial contribution that is paid when land is developed to contribute to capital costs, related to growth, that are not already recovered from development charges and parkland provisions. CBCs may be collected to support land for parks and other public recreational purposes, arts and culture, and more.

A community benefits charge strategy was prepared to document the increase in demand for additional facilities, services, and document the projects that would be funded by these charges.

Watson & Associates Economists Ltd prepared Pickering’s Community Benefits Charge Strategy. The Community Benefits Charge Strategy and Bylaw came into effect on September 30, 2022.

For qualifying developments, the following Community Benefits Charges are calculated per apartment unit. Below are the current CBC rates effective as of July 1^st, 2024

• Two bedrooms or more = $1,257
• One bedroom or less = $772

Please note that, similar to Development Charges (DCs), Community Benefits Charges are indexed annually on July 1^st based on the Building Construction Price Index for non-residential buildings.

Disputes about whether a charge exceeds the maximum allowable amount can be resolved through the land value appraisal process.