Despite building cranes dotting the skyline and seemingly ever-increasing traffic on our streets, Newmarket continues to be the municipality with the slowest rate of growth in York Region.
“One misconception often I’m surprised by is people (telling me) ‘Newmarket is growing so fast,’” Mayor John Taylor said at his community town hall event April 25. “The truth is … for well over a decade, Newmarket has grown at almost the same pace: one per cent per year.”
However, Newmarket is nestled in one of the fastest-growing regions in Canada, York Region, and in one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in Canada and the United States, the Greater Toronto Area.
“This is a very fast growing place and we’re a part of that and that creates opportunities and that creates challenges, no two ways about it,” Taylor said at the forum where he spoke about both those things — highlighting town finances, the local economy, housing and recreation amenities — before opening the floor to citizens with questions.
What’s booming, and what’s not
Adding about 1,000 new residents every year, Newmarket’s current population is more than 93,000, the mayor estimates.
The slower growth rate is beneficial, he believes, providing opportunities for local businesses, but allowing the municipality to keep pace with infrastructure needs and services.
What is booming in Newmarket is job growth, as it’s a centre for services and amenities that draw people from neighbouring communities that are experiencing high rates of growth, he said.
That explains the increasing volumes of traffic in our slow-growth town.
“We’re moving forward at a higher job growth rate (about four per cent) than our population growth rate, and that’s a metric that any jurisdiction in the world would be happy to have,” Taylor said.
The growth in new businesses is also significant, and manufacturing has quickly rebounded since the pandemic, he added, with several businesses currently expanding in Newmarket’s business park area.
The dying dream of home ownership and ‘missing middle’
The greatest challenge facing Newmarket and communities across the country is “housing for all.”
The price of homes has dramatically outpaced income, with the average price at $1.7 million in York Region.
The average household income over 10 years has increased 37 per cent, while the average house price has increased 135 per cent.
“Most people in here could not afford the home they’re living in today on their income today,” the mayor said.
It means home ownership will be unattainable for the majority of young people in our community, which underscores the critical need to increase rental housing, he emphasized.
“We better take our heads out of the sand and quit pretending we can create homeownership programs, and everybody one day will own a home if we work harder at it,” he said. “It’s not going to happen. We need to build rental housing.”
While three-quarters of residents currently own their homes, Newmarket has the highest number of renters in York Region, at about 25 per cent, which is expected to increase rapidly soon as the municipality targets expanded housing options and affordability, and construction of new condominium units and purpose-built rental buildings is completed.
“We’re one of the better situated, but nobody is well situated to match the need for rental housing that’s going to be coming our way,” Taylor said.
There's a need to create what’s termed the “missing middle” in housing, which includes small apartments and mid-rises, in-fills, basement apartments and garden and granny suites, as the trend of multi-generations of families living together grows.
“It’s part of the solution, but it’s not going to produce tens of thousands of units, it’s going to produce hundreds over years.”
The town will be “wrestling with this issue” as it embarks on an official plan review.
A need for parking typically accompanies any housing, which is part of the challenge, he added. The town will explore loosening up restrictions to permit on-street parking.
'You can’t build a house if you can’t flush a toilet'
“We’re trying to make sure housing options are there for everyone — for people who want to downsize, for your grandkids, for people new to the community, for young people. But you can’t just build housing, you have to build the infrastructure that goes with it."
The province is moving along approvals for the much-delayed sewage system solution required for growth in Newmarket, Aurora and East Gwillimbury, which is good news, he said. However, the $1-billion project is about five to seven years in the making.
Housing for all includes the most vulnerable, and Taylor said he is proud the Newmarket community rallied to raise $3 million for the new Inn From the Cold emergency and transitional housing building, which will be funded by the Regional Municipality of York.
The ‘big, big', 'crazy’ challenge
“The big, big, big one, the big challenge, Southlake. It’s been a little complicated and a little messy, but the need is only getting bigger. It’s our most important asset in the community. This is a place that helps us all at the most important times of our lives and crises. But they are so over capacity, it’s crazy,” he said, while urging continued community support.
If a location for a second campus is found, a new hospital will take a minimum of eight years to build — and it won’t be in Newmarket.
The hospital is searching for solutions like outpatient services in the meantime, he added.
The ‘exciting stuff’
The town’s "improved" financial strategy focuses on reserve management, debt management, revenue enhancement and capital management.
Debt is decreasing, and reserves have grown from about $80 million in 2016 and are now $160 million, which is required to fund critical projects without putting too much demand on the current tax base, Taylor said.
In comparison with the tax rate in other GTA municipalities, Newmarket is “in the middle of the pack.”
Amazing places and spaces
Trails, parks and recreational amenities continue to be a focus of efforts and resources, based on popular demand, Taylor said.
Coming up are Mulock Park, a new tennis facility, new pickleball courts, Mulock multi-use path and trail expansions.
A town where you want to live
The town is anticipating a major “rebranding and repositioning” campaign.
The year-long “city branding” project will take a holistic approach to branding “that brings the community into the conversation, and talks about what the community sees itself as, what it thinks it will be in the future, what it wants to be in the future” to create “a narrative, a video, a story, a brand proposition.”
“We’re going to build a town, a location, where people say ‘that’s where I want to live,’ and if I’m to live here, I might as well have my business there, and if I’m already here, I’m going to stay here, because I love it here. We’re doing the ‘build and they will come’ approach.”
What garnered audience applause
- AGO exhibits at Mulock Park
- Inn From the Cold expansion campaign
- Best Events in Ontario awards
- Best Farmers Market award
Some of the citizen questions and shortened answers
- Cost of land at Mulock Park? $24 million
- What actions have occurred since the town's declaration of climate emergency? Some but not enough.
- Extension of Main Street revitalization south of Davis? Yes.
- Continued arts funding and arts branding? Yes.
- Lack of ice time for youth sports since the loss of Hollingsworth Arena? Working on partnerships, focusing on outdoor rinks.
- Is the Mulock GO station happening? ‘Not in my time.’
- Can you tell us more about the stormwater bill increase? It was a "bold political decision" to boost the funds needed to catch-up for critical infrastructure, particularly in light of climate change conditions.
- Is there any plan to enhance well-used Fairy Lake Park, which has poor water quality, weeds on the banks, nasty washroom facilities? The conservation authority has some jurisdiction there, but yes, improved washroom facilities will happen.
- Will Southlake remain in Newmarket? The current hospital will remain, but there’s not enough land for a second campus in town.
