'Surgical' expropriation pondered by council to unlock vacant downtown land
Economic recovery from the pandemic will take years in Downtown London and the Old East Village.
On Tuesday, councillors took their first step towards developing a plan to revitalize London’s core business districts and tackle a blight of vacant buildings.
“The ‘Live-Work-Learn-Play’ (report) used 2014 numbers and told us 55,000 people came into our downtown every day. The number in the new Strategic Plan for the BIA used 2020 numbers. That was down to 33,000.” said Councillor John Fyfe-Millar who represents the downtown. “What we don’t have is what do our actual post-COVID numbers look like?”
According to a staff report, vacant office space rose to 20 percent last year.
Several councillors expressed a desire to target land speculators who block redevelopment by tying-up key properties indefinitely.
“The land-locking downtown is significant in terms of stalling any progress that we might have in revitalizing the core,” explained Councillor Stephen Turner to his council colleagues.
“One option that might be worth considering is expropriation in certain circumstances where it might be a little more surgical,” suggested Councillor Turner.
Councillor Shawn Lewis reminded politicians that exercising their power to expropriate land from unwilling property owners has limits.
“There has to be a very good municipal justification for expropriation,” said Lewis. “I’m not sure vacancy downtown would give us grounds to do that.”
Ground floor commercial vacancy in core business districts may be the most noticeable symptom, however, Councillor Maureen Cassidy reminded council members that the upper floors are usually residential.
“If we do think (about) strategic acquisition or even expropriation, there is a municipal justification there when we look at the crisis we have with housing in the city,” she said.
She proposed a process similar to city hall’s Industrial Land Strategy that acquires key properties for eventual sale to companies ready to build.
Council also discussed the possibility of a vacancy tax in the core to disincentivize land speculation.
At this time the province only permits a vacancy tax on residential properties, but city staff said they will look deeper at the options in their upcoming examination of core area vacancies.
“If we had the magic solution to revitalize the downtown we would have done it by now,” added Deputy Mayor Josh Morgan. “It’s a complex problem that requires a number of approaches and requires a number of strategic partners.”
Council, sitting as the Strategic Priorities and Policy Committee, unanimously recommended civic administration start work on a core area vacancy strategy.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. An 8-year-old child is only survivor
A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Calgary bridges remain closed due to ongoing police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Kinew, Poilievre meet at Manitoba legislature, discuss each other's priorities
Premier Wab Kinew and federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre met at the Manitoba legislature Thursday afternoon.
Rainfall warnings of up to 80 mm among weather alerts in effect for 6 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres and other alerts have been issued for six Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.