A newly launched Ontario pilot program will offer up to $25,000 to help cover industrial site approval costs. Private landowners or municipalities could be reimbursed for 50 per cent of various planning and environmental studies that require pricey technical expertise.

To qualify, land parcels must be appropriately zoned with an area of at least five acres (2 hectares). At least two of five key services— municipal water, municipal wastewater, electricity, natural gas and telecommunications — must be available within 500 metres of the site’s lot line, and prospective applicants must provide reasonable assurances that missing services will be in place within two years.

Owners of sites that meet these specifications are invited to enroll for a complimentary preliminary consultation. If given the okay to proceed, they will have until March 1, 2022 to submit applications to the pilot program.

“One of the missing pieces in the province’s land inventory is the diversity of industrial sites to meet the needs of a variety of industries,” submits Vic Fedeli, Ontario Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. “The launch of the Site Readiness Program will offer municipalities and industrial landowners across the province more flexibility to help bring their sites to market more quickly, compete globally and provide more options for site selectors and investors.”

Applicants must have endorsement from pertinent municipal or regional planning and economic development officials. They must also guarantee that the property will be on the market for at least one year, unless a sale is completed in the interim, if they receive funds through the program.