Stormwater Rate Study
The City of Vaughan is reviewing the current rate structure to ensure it’s fair, equitable and financially sustainable for residents, businesses and property owners while achieving the funding necessary to provide reliable stormwater services as Vaughan continues to grow. This will help ensure that the City’s stormwater management system can continue to protect people, property, the environment and water resources both now and in the future.
About Stormwater Management
Stormwater is rainwater and melted snow that runs off roofs, driveways, parking lots and other hard surfaces. Hard surfaces prevent stormwater from naturally soaking into the ground. Instead, stormwater builds up on the surface and flows into the City’s stormwater management system and then drains into our rivers and streams. Unmanaged stormwater can lead to flooding, river erosion and can carry pollutants and litter into the environment – damaging both the built and natural environment.
Stormwater management involves controlling the quantity and quality of stormwater runoff resulting from rainfall and snowmelt. The City maintains a complex network of stormwater management assets and services to mitigate potential issues caused by excess stormwater runoff, including underground stormwater pipe networks, ditches, culverts, stormwater management ponds and much more. Learn more about stormwater.
Study Overview and Timeline
The Stormwater Rate Study will:
- assess the current and required costs involved in delivering stormwater services across the city.
- analyze and evaluate alternative ways to fund stormwater management using key criteria.
- gather community input through an online survey, pop-up events and a virtual meeting.
- recommend a preferred stormwater rate and rate structure based on a technical evaluation and consideration of public input.
The study is anticipated to be completed in 2026. The findings of the study will then be presented at a future Committee of the Whole meeting for Council consideration.
Past Public Engagement Events
- Pop-up events: The study team hosted five pop-up events to meet with residents in person:
- Sunday, Jan. 19 at Maple Community Centre (10190 Keele St.)
- Monday, Jan. 20 at Vellore Village Community Centre (1 Villa Royale Ave.)
- Wednesday, Jan. 22 at Al Palladini Community Centre (9201 Islington Ave.)
- Thursday, Jan. 23 at Garnet Williams Community Centre (501 Clark Ave. W.)
- Sunday, Jan. 26 at North Thornhill Community Centre (300 Pleasant Ridge Ave.)
Review the material (PDF) shared at the pop-up events.
- Virtual meeting: The study team hosted a virtual meeting on Thursday, Jan. 30. View the presentation slides (PDF) and the meeting recording.
- Online survey: An online survey was available until Feb. 14. Thank you to everyone who participated.
About the Stormwater Rate
The stormwater rate is billed once annually. The collected funds are held in the City’s stormwater funding reserve and are used exclusively to deliver stormwater services, operational programming and capital infrastructure projects like the Black Creek Channel Renewal and Edgeley Pond Construction.
The City’s stormwater funding reserve is currently experiencing significant pressure. As the city continues to grow, so do pressures on our stormwater system. Additionally, significant weather events like heavy rain and snow can put a strain on our stormwater system. As we experience more frequent and intense weather events, we can expect that the impacts and demand on our stormwater infrastructure will also intensify.
The Current Stormwater Rate Structure
The current stormwater rate structure divides properties into seven tiers. The seven tiers are:
- small non-residential
- medium non-residential
- large non-residential
- agricultural/vacant
- low-density residential
- medium-density residential
- high-density residential
Each property tier is then charged based on the estimated stormwater runoff for their tier.
Comparison with Other Municipalities
Currently, the City charges its residents less for stormwater management than various other comparable municipalities. In 2024, the average single-family detached home in Vaughan paid $64.20 for their annual stormwater charge.
Provincial Regulations
Ontario Regulation 588/17: Asset Management Planning for Municipal Infrastructure requires all municipalities to have Asset Management Plans that include information about: the levels of service that they propose to provide, the activities required to meet those levels of service and a strategy to fund those activities. This legislation requires the City to have a clear, financially sound plan to pay for core services like stormwater management.