The 2023 Mayor’s Luncheon was held on December 1, 2023, and was hosted by the Burlington Chamber of Commerce at the Burlington Convention Centre. The event featured opening remarks from Mayor Marianne Meed Ward, followed by keynote speaker Rocco Rossi, the president and CEO of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce.
Meed Ward briefly touched on the latest 2024 budget that city council recently approved, with the property tax increase that it brings of 6.68% overall, including the city’s portion of 4.99%.
“We’re not the lowest, for sure, in the municipalities around us, but we are not the highest. This is a very difficult time in our entire country, in terms of trying to balance priorities, make sure that we plan and invest in the future,” said Meed Ward.
“We’re not just building housing. We’re not just building jobs. We’re also building a great place to live,” said Mayor Marianne Meed Ward, who proudly announced that Burlington was voted #1 liveable city to live in Ontario, and #5 in Canada, according to a recent study published by the Globe and Mail.
“We like to have a friendly competition with our friends over in Oakville — they were #29,” said Meed Ward jokingly.
Meed Ward went on to share that the city created a standing committee called Pipeline to Permit, and that there are over 40,000 units in what the city refers to as the development pipeline. Approximately 18,000 of those units are in pre-consultation, which means that they are in the preliminary stages; many of them do turn into actual development applications that are processed. The remaining units are either under review or approval, or are tied up at the Ontario Land Tribunal. Burlington’s housing pledge, the target that the city committed to from the province, is 29,000 units. In order for the city to qualify for funding from the province, the commitment for 29,000 units must be met.
“We are going to be laser-focused on making sure that we get things through the pipeline and that includes business applications,” says Meed Ward. “The whole point of this standing committee is to make sure that we have eyes on moving applications from hope and a dream, into shovel in the ground.”
There are a number of investments in business in this budget, which includes over $2 million in the budget to make sure the city is streamlining its planning and development process.
Meed Ward reinforces the city’s commitment to protect farmland, and as a result, the city needs to build around the GO train stations and redevelop older strip mall plazas, to plan for the anticipated growth.
There is also significant investment planned for the Burlington Lands Partnership, which is known as the Municipal Development Corporation in other cities. The focus of the Lands Partnership is to allow a degree of flexibility and agility, and the focus is three-fold. Its pillars include economic development, community amenities, and affordable housing.
The event’s keynote speaker, Rocco Rossi, shared meaningful reflection on his career as he leaves his role as the President and CEO of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and embarks on a new path.
“Something my dad taught me very early in life is that if you compare the size of the rearview mirror to the windshield, that’s how you should be looking at life,” says Rossi. “Yes, it’s important to look back as some of those things can harm you if you don’t keep your eye on them, but the reality is we live life forward and looking forward, looking at those opportunities, looking at those obstacles — that’s really what we need to be focusing on.”
Looking forward, Rossi spoke of critical economic drivers that Canada should be mindful of and anticipate. For example, in 1990, China represented 3% of global manufacturing capability. By 2020, China represented 30% — and while this is great for China, other countries may be missing an opportunity in manufacturing. To manufacture things for a country’s own domestic consumption is a pretty important function, says Rossi.
China consumes about 54% of all global coal burned for power as of today —that effectively is an early form of carbon capture, being emitted into the atmosphere. The West, however, has slowed down its emissions by outsourcing manufacturing to China, further supporting energy-intensive industries. Rossi does reinforce that we need to consider other parts of the world, and that this needs to go beyond Canada alone. According to Rossi, it is critical that we work together towards a common goal to better address key areas that include climate and productivity.
Additionally, Rossi touched on the importance of economic activity within one’s own province to support these key initiatives to work towards this common goal. If one considers the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, for every individual in the province of Ontario, economic activity works out to be roughly $60,000 per year. Comparing Ontario to Quebec, Quebec is roughly $54,000 per year. However, if you compare Ontario to the eight U.S. states that border the Great Lakes, from New York to Minnesota, the average of those eight states is $20,000 more per capita each year, says Rossi. If Ontario was able to attain this average, with a population of roughly 15 million residents, that could generate $300 billion every year.
“Think about what $300 billion dollars of additional economic value creation could mean to schools, to roads, to hospitals, to economic reconciliation with our First Nations, Métis, and Inuit brothers and sisters,” said Rossi.
Rossi asserted that it’s not about painting productivity in a negative light or to suggest that we need to work harder, but rather having the ability to work smarter. As Canada continues to grow through immigration, as a nation, it is our responsibility to leverage the capabilities of these newcomers.
“We can’t just live in the rearview mirror. That windshield tells us that we need to set immigrants up for success,” says Rossi, referring to the point system that Canada employs to qualify newcomers for immigration based on the credentials and training obtained in their home country — only to have those same credentials not recognized upon their arrival into Canada. This effectively reduces their skill sets. Rossi says that it is completely wasteful for us, as a country, but also wasteful and demeaning to the individual immigrating.
Housing was another key topic that Rossi discussed. In the current housing crisis, he said that between now and 2030, conservatively, we need 3.5 million more homes than we are on track to build. According to him, we are on track to build 1.8 million homes, creating quite the disparity. Canada simply does not have the labour force in place to support the building of that many more homes. Rossi believes that Canada needs to put those with trade skills at the front of the line when it comes to immigration.
Speed and decision-making need to be on the forefront, says Rossi.
The pandemic forced all levels of government and all businesses to generate a great deal of debt, but how does the nation keep up and eventually get ahead?
Rossi believes that short of cutting cheques, making a fundamental difference to improve productivity includes investing in the labour force development and the school systems, but also ensuring that there are tools available, such as broadband, which will enable individuals to be successful in the 21st century.
However, speed and decision-making are components that do not cost the government money, said Rossi, and this can do the most in moving the economy forward.
Staying ahead with innovative ideas should include greater investments in electric vehicle plant development and mining, as Canada is one of a few in the free world that has access to the critical minerals needed to manufacture electric vehicle batteries.
“We’ve got the big windshield out in front of us, and it is our job to drive the car forward, and we can only do that together and with a sense of urgency,” said Rossi as he wrapped up the event.
