The Ford government voted down a private members bill on Wednesday that aimed to speed up the process of transforming vacant office spaces into much-needed housing in the province, which ignited polarizing debates online. 

In May, Liberal MPP Karen McCrimmon introduced Bill 201, Commercial to Residential Conversion Act, 2024, which was designed to save roughly two years from the process of converting an office into an apartment. 

"At a time when there is critical need for residential housing, and commercial vacancy is still very high, barriers prevent the conversion of previously commercial buildings to residential use," said McCrimmon at the time. 

"This bill would remove one significant barrier," she continued, adding that the bill was developed in collaboration with city planners, who found that this specific regulation was a common barrier to building conversions.

This wouldn't enrich @fordnation's developer buddies--hard pass.

— Ross MacLeod 🇨🇦🇺🇦 (@rmlgestionnaire) October 24, 2024

However, the Ford government struck down the bill on Wednesday, with a spokesperson noting that the bill could have unintended consequences on existing regulations. 

"Our government is removing unnecessary burdens to build new homes," a spokesperson for the government said. "We continue to look at further options to reduce record of site condition (RSC) requirements for certain redevelopment projects, including conversions of larger commercial office buildings to residential or mixed-use." 

If we need more offices in future, they can be built elsewhere. This makes no sense during a housing crisis.

— n (@nataliehhhh) October 24, 2024

Despite this, McCrimmon told reporters that the Ford government did not give her a reason why they were not supporting her bill. When announcing the bill, McCrimmon cited support from two notable groups, including the Ontario Real Estate Association and the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers

"It was a very simple change that I'm really disappointed the government held," McCrimmon said. "We've got to do something about housing and this was a very simple change that would have made a change of up to two years of work in order to do a conversion from commercial to residential. And they vote it down. It just makes no sense." 

According to CBRE's Canada Office Figures Q3 2024, the national office vacancy rate increased slightly to 18.6 per cent in Q3. Toronto's percentage of vacant office space rose in every quarter throughout 2023 and sat at 18.2 per cent in Q3 2024. 

Oh a fast solution like this, takes money out of the pockets of developers...

— Mathew Rossi (@Xed17) October 24, 2024

As a result, the City is currently undertaking a study to analyze current office market conditions and to understand the pros and cons of converting office space to alternative uses. 

At its meeting on July 11, the Planning and Housing Committee endorsed the proposed office conversion policy directions and requested City Planning to undertake further analysis and engagement on office replacement and report back with final policy recommendations.

Your hourly reminder that Doug Ford’s @OntarioPCParty government has never been interested in creating affordable housing.

— Adam ⚾️ (@GradyTripp00) October 24, 2024

"The loss of office space is typically a permanent outcome that cannot be reversed later if market conditions change. Considering Toronto’s important economic role as Canada’s largest concentration of office employment and corporate headquarters, any resulting policy decision should be informed by comprehensive analysis," the City's website reads. 

"The Office Space Needs Study will include an office market analysis, weigh the benefits and risks of office space conversion, and explore policy options that balance office needs in the short-term and long-term."