"I will accelerate work on the City’s Housing Action Plan remove red tape and create pathways to create new housing opportunities here in Toronto. This includes simplifying the overly complicated set of rules that govern what individuals can build or themselves and their families; reducing delays, over-consultation and drawn-out appeals."

Brad Bradford

Question from TRREB

Q1: In your opinion, what are the two greatest challenges facing the City of Toronto today?

candidate response

Toronto has experienced unrivaled growth because we are a magnet for investment, immigration and talent. People from across the country and around the world bet on Toronto every day. They want to go to our schools, build their businesses and raise families here. It’s why we are the most culturally diverse city in the world. The challenge today is that we are not living up to our promises – or our potential – here in the City of Toronto. Life is too unaffordable for too many people, and City Hall is making life harder – not easier.

We need to make changes here at City Hall to unlock the gridlock, make our communities safer, and ensure that everyone has access to a home that they can afford.

Q2: If elected, will you support and accelerate the commitments made in the 2023 Housing Action Plan, including ending municipal exclusionary zoning by-laws and policies in Toronto that will allow and encourage more medium-density housing and purpose-built rental units?

Yes

Q3: If elected, would you support reducing approval times and other red tape barriers that limit the building of new housing in Toronto, thereby speeding up development?

Yes

Q4: If elected, would you push for more investment in critical infrastructure, such as transportation, to facilitate growth and housing by finding creative ways to secure funding from the provincial and federal governments?

Yes

Q5: If elected, would you commit to capping municipal costs added to new housing in order to limit further affordability erosion, and instead work together with the higher levels of government in finding new and sustainable funding mechanisms?

Yes

Q6: The City’s biggest and main source of revenue is property taxes. What would you support by way of annual property tax increases to maintain and/or improve the current services and programs the City provides?

Pegged to inflation

Q7: If elected, would you be willing to explore reform or adjustments to the Municipal Land Transfer Tax in Toronto? This might include increasing the first-time buyer rebate and indexing the MLTT rebate and tax thresholds to account for housing price inflation.

Yes

Q8: If you become the next mayor of Toronto, what is your top priority that you want to accomplish in the first 100 days in office?

The first thing we need at City Hall is a culture change. We need to build a culture of accountability, and of being more decisive – looking for ways to get to “yes” instead of looking for ways to say “no”, or wasting years in endless debate, deferral and delay.

I’ll bring in accountability by issuing Mayor’s Mandate Letters to all senior staff, setting out clear priorities and expectations of what they need to deliver on with the urgency I expect. Leadership begins at the top, and we need our civil service to perform at its very best for the people of Toronto.

As part of this mission, if we want a vibrant city that attracts and retains the best and the brightest, we need to ensure there is housing available at every price point. The promise of Toronto is predicated on the idea that if you want to build your life here, we want to have you. As mayor, I will accelerate work on the City’s Housing Action Plan remove red tape and create pathways to create new housing opportunities here in Toronto. This includes simplifying the overly complicated set of rules that govern what individuals can build or themselves and their families; reducing delays, over-consultation and drawn-out appeals; empower the Development and Growth Division to eliminate bureaucratic silos; establish as-of-right zoning and rules to make mid-rise possible; and unlocking government-owned lands for the creation of new affordable housing.

If elected, will you use the “strong mayor powers” to modify the budget to pay for your key priorities?

Yes