Phone calls from a city councillor and the Toronto Star appear to be helping City of Toronto efforts to recoup money owed by developers for unpaid community improvement commitments.A report to city council updates city efforts to get unpaid funds pledged by developers under sections 37 and 45 of Ontario’s planning law. More than $700,000 promised in return for city approvals for lucrative extra height and density on building projects remains outstanding.That’s way down, the city says, from $3.3 million in unpaid funds first identified by a review of the total $486.5 million Toronto builders agreed to pay community investment funds — spent on parks, community centres and other neighbourhood improvements — between 2008 and 2017. City staff have failed to get payments, due between 2006 and 2013, for five condo projects: 920-922 Sheppard Ave. W. ($100,000); 359-377 Roehampton Ave. ($200,000); 695-717 Sheppard Ave. W. ($180,000); 758-764 Sheppard Ave. W. ($218,000); and 2388-2398 Lake Shore Blvd. W. and 13 Superior Ave. ($3,387.44).At city council last week Councillor Josh Matlow (Ward 12 Toronto—St. Paul’s) convinced his colleagues to have city staff keep bugging developers for the money. The issue was deferred until the Oct. 28 council meeting.In an interview Matlow said he was alarmed the city is owed badly needed revenue and he realized one of the sites, on Roehampton, was in his ward before 2018 boundary changes. After making sure city staff approved, he reached out to the developer, Ron Herczeg of Soho Developments.Herczeg told him he was unaware of the $200,000 bill and pledged to pay if it is indeed owed, Matlow said. In an email to the Star, Herczeg wrote: “This project built by Roehampton Birch Properties was completed over 10 years ago. It is a little odd that we were made aware of this issue only many years later.“All fees to the city are always paid at the time of building permit issuance. One has to go bac ...
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