A Plan for Development
Well planned development is a partner to a city’s economic and population growth.
The development industry has a long history of working with the City of Winnipeg to design and build new communities. This has included extensive consultation and investment work in planning these communities, determining the measurable impacts of the new development and negotiating the share of the developer and City’s responsibilities for the costs.
The Development Agreement
Prior to any development beginning, the completion and sign-off on a land-use by-law, which defines the type of development that can take place on a specific piece of land (residential, industrial, commercial etc.).
After this, the development agreement is established between the city and the developer.
In 2006 the City of Winnipeg published A Guide to Understanding the Development Agreement Parameters, and defined them as:
Development agreement parameters serve as guidelines for the City administration and the development industry in setting conditions for development consideration by the City Council. The main purpose of these parameters is to ensure that:
- All developers pay for their equitable share of costs associated with development
- Development agreement obligations are consistent across developments
- Development complies with the City of Winnipeg’s construction specifications
The Development Agreement is a legal document, a contract that must be fulfilled by all parties. In Winnipeg, these parameters are a guideline to establishing the developer’s responsibilities for a specific development.
From 2007 to 2015 developer in-kind contributions to capital as reported by the City amounted to over $630 MILLION
What a Development Agreement Covers
For a typical development in Winnipeg, the Development Agreement will require the developer to install, at the developer’s cost:
- Roads
- Sewers
- Storm drainage
- Underground services
- Water mains
- Sanitary sewers
- Curbs
- Sidewalks
- Street lighting
- Traffic control devices and
- Traffic signage
- Required flood protection
- Other amenities
The developers may also be required to:
- Set aside land for public parks and landscape them
- Set aside land for public school sites for purchase by the Province
The Development Agreement also outlines the timeline for when the infrastructure assets will be turned over to the city, who are then responsible for their ongoing repair and maintenance.
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