A package of supports to nurture infill housing supply within the single-family residential sector has earned the Town of Collingwood plaudits for innovation and developing a model approach that other towns and cities could copy. The rapidly growing community of 27,500 on the shore of Georgian Bay has been recognized among this year’s best examples of creative policy implementation and effective service delivery across Ontario’s 444 local governments.

Collingwood received the PJ Marshall Award for its Rapid ARU (additional residential unit) Deployment Initiative at the recent 2025 annual conference of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) in Ottawa. The program was launched in 2023, and has since inspired other municipalities, such as St. Catharines, Ontario, to follow suit.

It combines financial incentives, a streamlined path to planning approvals and resources like pre-approved designs and a step-by-step project management guide, with a particular emphasis on augmenting the town’s inventory of year-round rental housing. In keeping with provincial rules that allow up to four dwelling units on a serviced residential lot, the program targets both new accessory units, such as basement apartments in existing homes, and separately located units over a garage or within other out-buildings on a property.

To date, 58 building permits have been approved through the initiative and 24 new long-term rental units have been added to the local market.

“This award is a testament to the power of collaboration and creative problem-solving in addressing today’s housing challenges,” asserts the Mayor of Collingwood, Yvonne Hamlin. “Collingwood Council, staff and the Affordable Housing Task Force remain committed to advancing solutions that create more inclusive, affordable and sustainable communities.”

The PJ Marshall Award is sponsored by AMO, the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario, the Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships, the Municipal Finance Officers’ Association and the Ontario Municipal Administrators’ Association.

Two other larger municipalities also received the honour:

• Middlesex County, with a population of 500,000+, for a risk-based, tiered response approach for dispatching paramedic services; and
• City of Kitchener, with a population of roughly 260,000, for the customer service centre at its City Hall.