The Flood Control Program is a strategic, long term, City-wide initiative to improve storm drainage capacity and limit surface and basement flooding risks in urban areas.
It is needed to achieve Council’s goal of providing a consistent levels of service for drainage across the City and to implement ongoing improvements identified in specific study areas.
One benefit of the program will be to increase resiliency to more severe storms in older neighbourhoods.
Flood control improvements will help protect public and private property from flooding and make critical infrastructure more resilient to climate change. Projects will reduce flood risks on arterial roadways (e.g. Woodbine Ave. , Steeles Avenue East, Enterprise Drive, Highway 7), help protect sanitary sewers from backing-up by reducing inflows, and manage City liabilities related to capacity limitations.
All residential properties in the City will be charged the Stormwater Fee, including single family homes and residential condominiums. All non-residential properties in the City will be charged a Stormwater Fee, including businesses and vacant lands.
Stormwater fees will be charged City-wide recognizing broad community and environmental benefits.
No, there is no existing funding source for approved flood control projects. Markham Council evaluated various funding sources, and following public consultation, a dedicated fee was selected as the most appropriate and transparent funding source, as opposed to taxes. The City has allocated Canada Gas Tax funds to cover a portion of program costs to reduce the amount of fees.
No, water and wastewater rates are dedicated to the purchase of drinking water from York Region, wastewater treatment, and operating and maintaining the local water supply system (including testing, water mains, fire hydrants etc).
The annual flat fee, effective January 2020, is $50 per residential property unit. The fee for non-residential property is $28 per $100,000 of Current Value Assessment (CVA), effective January 2020.
To achieve an equitable distribution, fees are based on City-wide runoff potential for all residential and non-residential properties (60% residential and 40% non-residential) considering the runoff from these land uses.
The annual flat Fee, effective January 2020 is $50 per residential property unit. The residential property will increase by $1 per year, each year thereafter.
The Fee will be included on the tax bill for residential properties.
The Fee will be applied to the Final 2020 Tax Bill for each residential property owner in Markham.
The Fee can be paid by any of the methods by which your property tax payments are made. Learn about your tax payment options
For additional information about Markham’s Flood Control Program and the new Stormwater Fee, call 905.477.5530, or email customerservice@markham.ca
In September 2019, Council approved the rate of $28 per $100,000 of Current Value Assessment (CVA), effective January 2020. The non-residential fee will increase by 2% per year, each year thereafter. This annual rate will be adjusted as required to compensate for the average change in City CVA. The fees will appear each year as a separate line item on the Final Tax Bill for each property.