Resolution of Persons Per Unit (PPU) with the Region

Capacity in the York Durham Sewage System (YDSS) has always been based on population. Previous servicing allocation assignments to each municipality have been expressed in units based on an overall average person per unit assumption. In Markham’s case this average has been 3.48, regardless of unit type. A Regional report dated April 5, 2006 confirmed that, based on 2001 census data, Markham has a lower average persons per unit than originally assumed (3.42 ppu). This lower average results from more higher density development being approved and constructed than originally anticipated when original assumptions were made. The Region has indicated that Markham may now assign units based on population related to actual unit types, rather than an average. To determine the actual population, the Region has assigned to Markham the persons per unit for each unit type as determined through the 2001 census. Table 1, below indicates Markham’s persons per unit for each unit type:

Table 1 – Persons per unit, by unit type
Unit Type	Persons per Unit
Single	3.70 ppu
Semi-detached	3.02 ppu
Townhouses	2.82 ppu
Apartments	2.27 ppu

It should be noted that all persons per unit by type, except for single detached units, is lower than the original 3.48 average and the revised average (3.42) used by the Region.

Markham’s Allowable Distribution of Allocation since January 1, 2004

In January 2004, Markham and the Region together, reconciled Markham’s population approved for inclusion in the YDSS capacity, as of January 1, 2004. This included all units that had been either registered within a plan of subdivision or units approved within a site plan development and unbuilt units. An adjustment for the undercount population stemming from the 2001 census was also included. The Region identified Markham’s YDSS capacity in Persons as 307,500 people. Table 2 shows our reconciled population as of January 1, 2004 and the undercount minus Markham’s YDSS capacity. This results in the remaining population to be assigned from January 1, 2004, forward being 59,759 people.

Table 2 – Calculation of Markham’s available capacity in the YDSS (as of January, 2004)
	Singles	Semis	Town	Apts	Total
					Units	Pop
PPU	3.70	3.02
Unit/Pop before Jan 1/04	51,521	3,094	7,179	8,673	70,467	239,904
Adjustment for undercount						7,837
Total population before Jan.1/04 including undercount						247,741
Markham’s YDSS capacity in persons						307,500
Population to be assigned from January 1, 2004 forward						59,759

Assignment of servicing allocation from January 1, 2004 to spring 2006

The Town’s original servicing assignment from the Region was 11,766 units which included all developments that were either draft plan approved or site plan approved but not registered. In the Fall of 2005, the Region was able to achieve an additional 4732 units for Markham through the use of a Dynamic Model of the YDSS. This brought our sanitary allocation capacity up to the water allocation capacity. Council reported out, on February 15, 2005, the distribution of the original 11,766 units and the distribution of the additional 4732 units. In June 2005, the Region approved an additional 1,268 units subject to the condition that the Town’s proposed flow control option is in place. This brought Markham’s total number of units up to 17,776 units. The combined distribution of 4,732 units plus the 1,268 units (total 6,000 units) were reported out on November 22, 2005.

As part of the persons per unit analysis, the Region and the Town reviewed our complete distribution, by unit type of 17,776 units from January 1, 2004. Through this process, staff reconciled all developments and their unit types. Table 3 summarizes the distribution of the 17,776 units to each secondary plan since January 1, 2004. Appendix “A” provides a more detailed breakdown of unit types and population within each Secondary Plan.

Table 3 – Distribution of 17776 Units by Secondary Plan
Secondary Plan	Total Assignment from January 2004 to November 2005
Secondary Plan	Units	Pop
Angus Glen/Deacon	300	1070
Berczy Village	821	2612
Box Grove	2230	7959
Cathedral	1537	5094
Cornell	2651	8753
Greensborough	873	3052
Leitchcroft	413	968
Markham Centre	2845	6639
Markham Road S	566	1381
Milliken Main St	569	1376
OPA 15	522	1279
South Unionville	411	1335
Swan Lake	450	1281
Villages of Fairtree	689	2209
Wismer Commons	1317	4481
Infill	995	2778
Reserve	572	Unknown
Total	17776	52267

Included in this distribution are 572 units that remain in the reserve that were not assigned by the Town. These 572 units resulted from the reconciliation and recalculation exercise conducted by staff while converting all allocation tracking to population. As they were not assigned, the population is unknown. Due to this reassessment of the method of distribution by unit type and the reconciliation with the committed units, Table 4 calculates the remaining population that can now be assigned.

Table 4 – Calculation of Remaining Population to be Assigned
Population to be assigned from January 1, 2004 forward (Table 2)	59,759
Population committed up to Spring ’06 (Table 3)	52,267
Remaining population to be Assigned	7,492

The remaining population of 7,492 generates a range of units from 2,030 units (all singles) to 3,309 units (all apartments). If we were to distribute based only on the revised average of 3.42 ppu, we would have 2,196 units.

Criteria used for distribution of current assignment

Staff have again reviewed the guidelines for prioritizing allocation adopted by Council on December 10, 2002 and have utilized them as a basis for determining recommended servicing allocation. The guidelines were based on the following criteria:

Completion of key transportation infrastructure (e.g. Markham By-pass, Box Grove By-pass, Victoria Square By-pass, major collector roads, etc.);
Implementation of Markham Centre;
Infill development and redevelopment along key transit corridors;
Affordable housing projects;
Provision of development with public benefits (e.g. community facilities and public infrastructure); and
Provision of development that supports the Town’s smart growth and new urbanism initiatives, and that demonstrates exceptional urban design.

In addition Council endorsed additional considerations in the February 2005 report which included:

Existing and future commitments for delivery of infrastructure;
Completion of development blocks (filling in the holes) and giving communities a “finished” look;
Ability to utilize allocation in a reasonable timeframe; and
Infill development ready to proceed.

Using the criteria and additional considerations endorsed by Council, staff recommend the assignment to Secondary Plan Areas as identified in Table 5 (following page).

Table 5 – Recommended Assignment (Spring 2006)
Secondary Plan	RK	Total from Jan. 04 to Nov. 05		Spring 06 Assignment		Total Assignment		Comment/Conditions
Secondary Plan	RK	Unit	Pop	Unit	Pop	Unit	Pop	Comment/Conditions
Angus Glen/ Deacon	4	315	1070			315	1070	* Bridge construction and servicing on Glenbourne Park Dr.
Berczy Village	4	821	2612			821	2612
Box Grove	3	2230	7959	150	423	2380	8382	Construction of Town portion of By-pass (407 to 9^th)
Cathedral	3	1537	5094	300	856	1837	5950	Construction of Ph 1 & 2 of By-pass
Cornell	2	2651	8753	450	1363	3101	10116	Retain 150 units for High Density in Cornell Centre * Construction of Bur Oak to Hwy 7 by summer ‘06
Greensborough	4	873	3053	169	625	1042	3677	Construction of Castlemore Ave. to Hwy. 48 by Dec. 06
Leitchcroft	3	413	968	150	341	563	1309
Markham Centre	1	2845	6639	500	1135	3345	7774	Enter into Developer’s Group Agreement, Finance Birchmount from Enterprise to Hwy 407
Markham Rd. S	3	566	1381			566	1381
Milliken Main St	3	569	1376	310	735	879	2111	Completion of Gorvette Rd. and/or Midland Ave.
OPA 15	2	522	1279			522	1279
South Unionville	4	411	1335			411	1335
Swan Lake	4	450	1281			450	1281
Villages of Fairtree	4	689	2209			689	2209
Wismer Commons	4	1317	4481	384	1178	1317	4481	Reserve 150 units for High Density on Markham Rd. * Completion of Roy Rainy Road
Infill		995	2778			995	2778
Sub-Total		17204	52267	2413	6654	19452	58308
Reserve		572			838
Total		17776			7492

* Conditions from previous assignments that have not been met to-date

The population assignments above have been determined by staff in consultation with the Trustees for the Secondary Plan areas and are based on unit types included in active applications filed with the town. A small reserve is included for infill developments and those developments that Council deems appropriate to proceed over time. The 838 population can translate into 226 singles or 370 apartments, or something in between, if semi-detached and townhouse units are included. It should be noted that allocation to specific developments within Secondary Plan areas is subject to site plan and draft plan approval by Council, in consultation with the Trustee for the respective Developer’s Group Agreements. Council continues to make the final determination as to whether a development receives allocation or not, at the development approval stage.

Proposed distribution vetted through Development Services Committee and Developers Round Table

The proposed distribution was presented to Development Services Committee on May 16, 2006 and to the development industry at a Developers Round Table meeting held on May 23, 2006, in a draft form for discussion and comment.

Staff have received comments (both oral and written) on the proposed allocation and attended meetings upon request, to discuss the proposed distribution. Written submissions received are attached as Appendix ‘C’. Generally, there seems to be a recognition that, given the minimal amount of allocation available to the Town from the Region and using the allocation criteria and added considerations, the above distribution is fair and justified. Some comments/questions related to the ability of a developer or a group of developers (through the Trustee) to vary population and unit assignments. The population assignments are fixed. Should developers wish to vary the unit types within the total population allocated, they may do so, subject to receiving appropriate Town approvals. However, the recommended population assignments are fixed, subject to Council approval, and more units are to be derived from higher density development, based on person per units assumptions.

The table attached to this report as Appendix “A” includes a more detailed account of each development area within the Town, including: the total development proposed, those that have been assigned, remaining assignment to be approved (the use it or lose it column) the proposed Spring 06 assignment, the total assignment and remaining development still in need of assignment.

Delegation of Approval Authority to staff

Staff are aware that much of the recommended distribution will be assigned, through area trustees, to additional phases of draft approved plans. It has been our practice to hold public meetings on entire draft plan submissions but only report on and recommend approval of those portions (phases) of the plan receiving servicing allocation. As additional allocation has become available, staff has reported on additional phases of the plan. This has proven to be a rather cumbersome process, both from an administration and processing time perspective. In order to streamline and reduce processing times, staff are now recommending that Council delegate to staff authority to approve these additional phases. Staff will include a listing of plans approved under delegated authority in the standard ‘delegation report”. However, if the public meeting was held more than two years prior, a report to Development Services Committee and Council will be prepared to ensure further public input.

Draft Plan/Site Plan Approval without allocation

In February 2006 the Region adopted a new policy for release of Regional conditions of draft approval/site plan approval to local municipalities, where a servicing allocation is not immediately available. They have agreed to release Regional conditions of draft approval to Markham when the following criteria are met:

1. Regional services are expected in four years

2. Official Plan (containing growth management policies and phasing provisions) and Secondary Plan adopted

3. Detailed infrastructure needs have been determined through Master Servicing Plan, Community Design Plan, Phasing Plan, etc.

4. Housing supply – within 3-7 year draft approved supply

5. Monitoring is in place

Draft approval/site pan approval could follow with:

· Restrictions on presales

· Holding (H) zoning until trigger point reached (e.g. project tendered or operational within a year)

· Building permits are controlled through Section 34(5) by-law

· Appropriate conditions of draft approval (triggers)

Conditions one through five are in place for all Secondary Plan Areas of the Town. As well, a Section 34(5) By-law, which controls release of building permits in relation to provision of services, is in place Town wide. Staff are satisfied that, there are sufficient controls within these conditions to ensure developments are not able to proceed to construction without having the appropriate servicing in place.

However, the challenge remains to ensure that once agreements not to presell, hold provisions appended to zoning and building permits are released, servicing capacity will be available before completed buildings are occupied. For Markham, this capacity will be available when construction of the SE collector and expansion of the Duffins Creek treatment plant is complete. Therefore, the timing of release of “no presale” agreements, hold provisions and building permits must be linked to key points (triggers) in the construction process of these large infrastructure projects. The appropriate triggers have yet to be finalized in consultation with Regional staff. Town staff will continue discussions with the Region over the summer and report back in the fall regarding a more detailed process (including triggers) to manage draft approval and site plan approval for projects with no current servicing allocation. It should be noted that completion of construction of the SE collector and the Duffins Creek plant expansion remain targeted by the Region for December 2010. Therefore, Markham could potentially begin to implement this process in December 2006. Also, it is recognized that the timing of “Hold” removals, permit issuance and construction, in relation to the agreed upon triggers will be different for high rise construction due to longer construction times and financing needs.

Policies for approval of low density development and high density development will be presented to Development Services Committee for adoption when the “triggers” are finalized, in consultation with the Region.

Table 1 – Persons per unit, by unit type

Table 2 – Calculation of Markham’s available capacity in the YDSS

(as of January, 2004)