FAQs
- Health and happiness
- Equity and local economy
- Culture and community
- Land and nature
- Sustainable water
- Local and sustainable food
- Travel and transport
- Materials and products
- Zero waste
- Zero carbon energy
- Servicing Allocation
- Development Charge (DC) Full or Partial Exemptions ($);
- Recognition program, Sustainable Design Awards/Green Development Champion
- Expedited approval process
- Community Improvement Plan ($)
- Tax Increment Equivalent Grants (TIEG)($)
- Stormwater Credit ($)
- External Grant Programs
What is the Whitby Green Standard?
The Whitby Green Standard is a planning tool used to help guide sustainable new development in the Town.
What is the goal of the Whitby Green Standard?
The goal of the Whitby Green Standard is to increase the uptake of sustainability measures for new development in the community. This will help new developments improve environmental, social, and economic performance, increase community resiliency, and support the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate the effects of climate change.
How does the Whitby Green Standard work?
The Whitby Green Standard provides a one-stop-shop for navigating municipal sustainability policies, plans & strategies in new development. The checklists found in the Whitby Green Standard will help developers and the Town ensure that minimum sustainability criteria are being met during a development application. The Whitby Green Standard also highlights opportunities for developers to go above and beyond to incorporate sustainable practices into their design and developments. There are four tiers of the Whitby Green Standard: Tier 1 of the checklists identifies mandatory criteria that need to be met by all new development applications. Tiers 2 to 4 identify ways in which developers can achieve high-performance sustainable development on a voluntary basis.
When will the Whitby Green Standards be applied?
Once Whitby Council approves the final version, the metrics will apply to all new development subject to the Town’s Site Plan Control Bylaw & Plan of Subdivision Agreement.
How does the Whitby Green Standards Align with other work being completed on sustainability?
The proposed Whitby Green Standards follows the One Living Planet approach. This ensures that the ten themes of sustainability are addressed through the proposed tool, which aligns with the Towns existing work identified in the Corporate Sustainability Plan. These ten themes are:
Are there incentives for meeting the Whitby Green Standard?
Incentives would typically be awarded to developers who achieve Tier 2 or higher in the Whitby Green Standard. Incentives can be provided in forms of monetary or non-monetary. Examples of incentives include:
At this time there are no proposed incentives to support the Whitby Green Standard, it has been identified that a study be undertaken in 2021 to determine what incentives would best fir the proposed Whitby Green Standard.
Will the Whitby Green Standard delay the current development process?
The Whitby Green Standard has been created to help make it easier for developers to navigate the development process. It is anticipated that the Whitby Green Standard will not delay the current process unless minimum standards are not being met.
How frequently will the proposed Whitby Green Standard be updated?
The performance measures increase every four years. This means that in 2024, Tier 2 will advance and become the mandatory Tier 1. By 2036, today’s Tier 4 level will be Tier 1 mandatory. The goal is for all new development will be near zero emissions by 2036, which aligns with the Towns GHG reduction energy targets for climate change.
What other municipalities have green development standards?
Several municipalities have green development standards in place, including the following Towns and Citiies; Toronto, Richmond Hill, Brampton, Vaughan, Missisisauga, Halton Hills, Clarington and Pickering.