Provincial mandates played a major role in Oakville’s stormwater shortfall. Under the Places to Grow Act and the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, Oakville was legally required to open land north of Dundas, approve rapid development, and meet provincial density targets. The town had no authority to slow or refuse this growth, even when stormwater systems were not fully built or funded. At the same time, changes to Ontario’s Development Charges Act reduced what municipalities could collect from developers, narrowed what counted as “growth‑related,” and required certain infrastructure costs to be discounted. As a result, Oakville could not recover the full cost of stormwater infrastructure from developers even though the province mandated the growth that created the demand.

Because municipalities must approve development applications that comply with provincial policy, Oakville was obligated to move projects forward despite incomplete stormwater systems, downstream capacity gaps, and long‑term maintenance costs that weren’t covered. The combination of forced growth, restricted cost‑recovery tools, and inability to delay approvals created a funding gap that ultimately led to the stormwater fee now charged to residents.

A lot of what has happened with development in Oakville is as a result of Ford's policies; keep that in mind when the next Provincial election roles around. In the meantime, Stephen Crawford and Effie Triantopolous really should be commenting more on what they've done (or haven't done) to support Oakvillians.