Site Certification

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I recently attended a presentation on Ontario’s Certified Site Program at the Windsor Essex Development Commission.  The Presentation was made by Ms. Carrie Manchuk, Project Manager for Investment Ready: Certified Site Program a Ontario Government Project.

Ms. Manchuck presented a new Ontario Government program designed to promote investment in Ontario.  Site Certification has become common place in North America and is designed to reduce uncertainties for investors and speed up the site selection process.

The Government is providing funding to assist qualifying industrial zoned sites in becoming Certified.  Owners must apply to see if they qualify to become Site Certified, and there is deadlines for application.  The Ontario Site Certified Program only applies to industrial sites that are 10 Acres or more.  This eliminates the majority of available sites in Windsor and Essex County.  However the structure and requirements of becoming site certified are examples all property owners and developers should take note of.

With the intent of luring Companies from around the world to Ontario. The Ontario Government has produced a database of approximately  1600 site prospectors / investment brokers from around the world.  The Ontario Government  intends to market the Site Certified Sites to these site prospectors.  By having sites pre-qualified or certified, it is hoped investors and companies will not overlook Ontario as a place to invest.  As investors look at many sites and locations, it is very helpful if a site prospector / broker has as much preliminary information as possible when including or excluding  a site as a potential place to invest. The idea is to get all the information in one place that can be accessed in just a couple of minutes.

The Ontario Government is offering financial assistance to qualifying sites that wish to become site certified.

As a commercial realtor, I prepare much of this information for a listing, and can assist clients in applying for Site Certification.  Buckingham Realty is now producing custom websites which will feature much of this information, at a quick glance ie. www.4000rhodes.com

The Windsor Essex Development Commission can also assist in providing available skilled employment, demographics and other area specific reports.

Some of the Basic information needed to apply include:

Minimum 10 Acre Site

Aerial Photo

Site Location / Context Map

Title Search

Existing Property Survey/Registered Site Plan

Tax Assessment Map

Current Zoning

Environmental Report including weather property is in a flood zone, or has potential to be contaminated

Availability of Services Water, Gas, Electricity, Communication (including capacities)

Access to Transportation: Road, Highway, Rail, Air, Water

Proximity to Border

Potential Development Constraints including any Heritage designations

Other Additional Information that may be required includes:

Title Opinion or Insurance

Planning Report

Phase 1 Environmental

Phase 2 Environmental

Archaeological Assessment

Natural Heritage Assessment / Environmental Investigation

Species at risk Assessment

Functional Servicing Report

Technical Heritage Studies

Appraisal

For More Information Visit:

https://www.ontario.ca/business-and-economy/investment-ready-certified-site

 

Benefits

You can receive up to 50% of your eligible expenses back per site. The maximum reimbursement is $25,000 per site.

Investment ready sites also benefit from:

  • an international marketing campaign aimed at the site selection community
  • a profile on www.InvestinOntario.com
  • promotion at key global real estate, site selection and investment attraction events

Overview of Program PDF

Pre-Screening Application

Instruction Page

Application to Certify