Ontario Construction News staff writer
Ottawa’s mayoral candidates squared off Thursday morning over how best to partner with the construction industry to address the city’s housing crisis, tackling contentious issues including the urban boundary, development charges and permitting delays.
The debate was co-hosted by the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association (GOHBA) and the Ottawa Real Estate Board (OREB), GOHBA executive director Jason Burggraaf and OREB CEO Nicole Christy moderated the debate.
For the construction and development sectors, the stakes of the 2026 municipal election were brought into sharp focus as candidates Alex Lawson, Jeff Leiper, Neil Saravanamuttoo and incumbent Mayor Mark Sutcliffe pitched their visions for the city’s growth.
Alex Lawson, a framing contractor, painted a stark picture of the current business climate for the local construction industry. He noted that smaller and medium-sized builders are leaving Ottawa for municipalities like Brockville, where approvals are easier to secure and development charges are less financially prohibitive.
“It’s going to be that builders and businesses feel good about doing business in Ottawa again,” Lawson said when asked how his success should be measured. He also highlighted the need for transit networks that serve construction sites, pointing out that tradespeople currently need a vehicle just to access their jobs.
Incumbent Mayor Mark Sutcliffe defended his record, arguing that he is fighting to keep the dream of homeownership alive by making it easier and more affordable to build homes in Ottawa. Sutcliffe pledged to put the industry in a position to build 75,000 more homes by the end of the decade. He emphasized the need to improve the elements the municipality can control, specifically citing the speed of the approval process, fees, land supply and property taxes.
The debate also exposed sharp divides on where and how the city should grow.
Jeff Leiper pushed strongly for intensification over suburban expansion, warning that urban boundary expansions impose massive environmental and economic costs on future generations, primarily through long-term infrastructure maintenance. To facilitate infill and density, Leiper promised to implement correct zoning with “as of right permissions” so builders can bypass lengthy secondary plan changes and rezonings, allowing them to proceed directly to site plans.
Neil Saravanamuttoo agreed that the city cannot afford the future liability of expanding the urban boundary, pointing out the existing infrastructure gap. To speed up construction and assist the industry, Saravanamuttoo proposed modernizing City Hall’s highly manual administrative processes. He advocated for using artificial intelligence for automated code and zoning compliance, alongside a public real-time tracking dashboard for development applications.
While Sutcliffe noted that no urban boundary expansion had been approved during his last term, he cautioned that a balanced approach is necessary. Not every new resident wants to live in a downtown apartment, Sutcliffe said, adding that many families will still want space and a backyard in the suburbs.
Lawson echoed this sentiment, arguing that the city must evaluate urban boundary extensions based on the lifestyle preferences of its growing population.
Election Day is Oct. 26.
