Off-Site Levies
The City of Medicine Hat charges developers a levy that helps pay for the cost of the off-site infrastructure. This helps to ensure that growth pays for growth. Off-site levies are just one of the tools the City uses to help attain financial sustainability.
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Who pays for off-site infrastructure? |
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Both the City and developers contribute. The City of Medicine Hat calculates how much growth is projected in an area and how much impact that growth will have on infrastructure. The City then shares the costs of growth. The City and developers both contribute to the cost of off-site infrastructure. Buyers of new homes do end up paying for some of the cost of the infrastructure. When the developers pay levies to cover the cost of growth infrastructure, the charges are included in the cost of a new house. This infrastructure is critical to ensuring residents continue to live in complete communities with the services they need. |
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How are rates determined? |
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projects the infrastructure required to support and maintain cost-effective and orderly growth. The City has allocated those costs to the lands in nodes that will benefit from the new or expanded infrastructure so that developers and people subdividing land will pay an amount proportionate to the area being developed or subdivided. The current Off-site Levy Bylaw was approved by City Council on September 4, 2013. The City reviews the rates each year. Provincial legislation dictates that levy collection is subject to annual reporting requirements. |
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Subsidies |
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The city offers a scaled subsidy program, whereby the City of Medicine Hat agrees to assist with part of the off-site infrastructure fees. This measure was approved by City Council to encourage new development in Medicine Hat, particularly to attract new investment to the city. The assist levels are higher in areas where the City would most like to encourage new development (intensification areas). Current subsidies
Intensification is one of the main policy goals of the Municipal Development Plan. The intensification nodes used in the Off-Site Levy Bylaw are aligned with the intensification area in the MDP. |
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City nodes map |
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The City of Medicine Hat is divided into 18 different "nodes", under the Off-Site Levy Bylaw. Each area has a different off-site levy rate based on factors which ensure that each development carries an equal share of costs associated with the needs of each node. In most of the nodes, there will be ongoing development for at least a couple of decades. In nine of the nodes, development is not anticipated until further in the future. |
Off-site levy rates and City assist
Rates effective January 1, 2019 - December 31, 2021. At Council meeting on December 7, 2020, City Council directed management to prepare an incentive-based program that will begin in 2022 and replace the existing municipal assist program.
| Node | Name | Area Classification | Municipal Assist | Total Levies ($ per hectare) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
0 |
Land outside nodal boundaries |
Established |
Determined on a case-by-case basis |
$234,602 |
|
1 |
Downtown |
Priority 1 intensification |
90% |
$407,359 |
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2 |
River Flats |
Priority 1 intensification |
90% |
$198,845 |
|
3 |
IXL Area |
Priority 1 intensification |
90% |
$173,500 |
|
4 |
Burnside Estates |
Priority 1 Greenfield |
30% |
$233,936 |
|
5 |
Brier Run |
Priority 1 Greenfield |
30% |
$212,644 |
|
6 |
Cimarron / SW Lands / Saamis Heights 7 |
Priority 1 Greenfield |
30% |
$301,400 |
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7 |
Suntec Lands |
Priority 1 Greenfield |
30% |
$199,908 |
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8 |
Airport Lands |
Priority 1 Greenfield |
30% |
$292,788 |
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9 |
Box Springs Business Park |
Existing under development |
30% |
$246,672 |
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10 |
Canyon Creek |
Existing under development |
30% |
$210,648 |
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11 |
Hamptons |
Existing under development |
30% |
$208,887 |
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12 |
Ranchlands 4 |
Existing under development |
30% |
$149,390 |
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13 |
Southlands 7 |
Existing under development |
30% |
$218,720 |
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14 |
Southlands 6C |
Existing under development |
30% |
$208,887 |
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15 |
South Vista 11 |
Existing under development |
30% |
$185,507 |
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16 |
Ranchlands 3C |
Existing under development |
30% |
$139,557 |
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17 |
River Ridge |
Existing under development |
30% |
$183,201 |