Ontario’s housing crisis has produced no shortage of studies, reports, consultations and promises. Governments have pledged to build more homes, speed up approvals and remove barriers to construction.
Yet, despite billions of dollars directed towards housing initiatives and municipal modernization, the pace of approvals remains stubbornly slow, and housing supply continues to lag demand.
That’s why RESCON has joined an AI for Housing Coalition led by One Ontario, a non-profit organization dedicated to modernizing real estate development and permitting processes across the province.
The coalition is dedicated to a unified, province-wide AI-enabled platform to modernize development approvals.
As a development partner, RESCON will help ensure the coalition remains focused on housing delivery outcomes and the realities faced by builders, developers, and housing providers across Ontario. Our group of builders will provide strategic guidance, industry insight, and advocacy support as the coalition advances its vision for a modernized approvals ecosystem.
At first glance, permitting modernization might not sound like the most exciting topic in housing policy. But it’s a persistent problem. Builders must navigate a labyrinth of municipal approvals, agency reviews, studies and regulatory requirements. Delays that stretch months or even years add costs, create uncertainty and ultimately reduce the number of homes that reach the market.
RESCON has spent years calling attention to these obstacles. In fact, our crusade began in 2014. In our policy submissions and public advocacy, we’ve consistently highlighted cumbersome planning approvals, regulatory complexity and municipal red tape as key factors suppressing housing starts across the province
We represent builders who are responsible for constructing the bulk of Ontario’s new homes, so we have a direct view of how fragmented approval systems across the province affect housing delivery.
Our commitment to become a development partner in the AI for Housing Coalition signals an important evolution. Rather than focusing solely on policy advocacy, we are attempting to build part of the solution.
The initiative, led by One Ontario, is based on a very straightforward observation. Ontario’s housing approval system remains fragmented. Municipalities, applicants and review agencies often operate on different systems, follow different processes and rely on disconnected datasets. For builders, the overall approvals journey can feel like navigating a maze.
The coalition envisions a province-wide, AI-enabled permitting platform built on standardized zoning, planning and property data. Instead of applicants moving through multiple systems and agencies, the long-term objective is a single dashboard that manages approvals from beginning to end. The platform would identify requirements, help prepare applications, coordinate reviews, track progress and create greater transparency throughout the process.
Artificial intelligence can help eliminate repetitive administrative tasks, reduce duplication, improve consistency and create better visibility into where approvals stall. When combined with standardized data and co-ordinated processes, the result could be a more predictable and efficient system.
This is where RESCON’s role becomes particularly important.
Technology projects often succeed or fail based on whether they reflect the realities of the people expected to use them. A platform designed without input from the residential construction industry would risk becoming another well-intentioned initiative that does little to address actual approval bottlenecks.
As development partner, RESCON will bring critical real-world perspective to the problem. Our role is not simply to endorse the coalition. It is to provide strategic guidance, policy expertise, industry leadership and practical insight into how approvals affect housing projects on the ground.
Builders know where delays occur. They understand which parts of the system create unnecessary uncertainty and where duplication wastes time and resources. Input from builders can help ensure the platform addresses genuine problems rather than theoretical ones.
RESCON also brings credibility to the table. Permitting modernization requires broad support from municipalities, provincial officials, technology providers, researchers and industry stakeholders. Few organizations are better positioned than RESCON to bridge those conversations.
We have longstanding relationships with government and our industry and has spent years advocating for practical housing solutions. Our participation sends a signal that permitting modernization is not simply a technology exercise but a very serious housing delivery priority.
The coalition has the right mix of partners. One Ontario provides the vision for a co-ordinated provincial approach. LandLogic contributes technology, AI and data infrastructure. RCI Lab brings regulatory intelligence and compliance expertise. RESCON contributes housing delivery knowledge and policy insight. Together, the partners bring capabilities that no single organization possesses on its own.
That collaborative approach matters because Ontario’s housing challenges cannot be solved by any one sector acting alone. Governments can introduce reforms, but implementation remains difficult. Technology companies can build platforms, but they need industry input. Researchers can identify challenges, but real-world adoption requires practitioners and policymakers working together.
While recent government policies such as the temporary HST rebates and development charge measures are moving the dial, digitization and modernization of the system needs to be improved. We are far behind other leading jurisdictions. We are working with a few large municipalities in Ontario to advance the One Ontario initiative, but more work remains.
Ontario needs more homes. Delivering them will require policy changes as well as improvements to the infrastructure that governs approvals and development. By joining the coalition, we are helping move the conversation beyond identifying problems toward building practical solutions.
Ontario needs more homes. Delivering them will require policy changes, as well as improvements to the infrastructure governing approvals and development. By joining the coalition, we are helping to move the conversation beyond identifying problems and toward building practical solutions.
Richard Lyall
President of the Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON)
Content published on the Senso Magazine website is automatically translated using Google Translate services.
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