Hundreds of Oakville property owners could receive a "customized flood preparedness education program," thanks to the settlement of a class action that originally sought nearly $1 billion in damages from the town, region and other local decision-making bodies.
Launched in 2020, the lawsuit claimed that "an alarming rate" of development in northern areas of Oakville made hundreds of southern Oakville properties less usable, less valuable and at a higher risk of flooding.
Read more here: Town, region, mayor among those named in $1B class action
It sought damages from the towns of Oakville and Milton, the Region of Halton, Conservation Halton, the province of Ontario and Mayor Rob Burton.
The statement of claim filed with the court argued that approval of development north of Dundas Street had replaced permeable green space with impervious roads, roofs and patios.
That added stormwater and snow melt to creeks running toward Lake Ontario, expanding the flood plain and increasing the risk for downstream properties, it said.
A proposed settlement to end the action was recently published online. It still requires final approval from the court, at a hearing scheduled for June 19, 2024.
While the town, region and other defendants "deny that they acted improperly or wrongfully in any way whatsoever," they have agreed to pay a combined $1 million into a fund to settle the claim.
But property owners won't see any cash from the deal.
After covering expenses and legal fees, the money will be paid to the University of Waterloo’s Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation, "to develop a customized flood preparedness education program" for impacted property owners.
The settlement covers anyone who owned land within the regulatory flood hazard area between Jan. 1, 2005 and March 5, 2024.
The program will "help homeowners to help themselves" to reduce flood risk and minimize damage in the event of a flood. Community meetings, mailings, door-to-door visits and online communications are planned.
At least 1,643 properties south of Dundas Street are identified as impacted.
A list, alphabetized by street name, can be found online here. A map of floodplain boundaries can be viewed online as well.
Property owners may opt out of the class settlement and retain the legal right to sue for damages individually. Instructions for opting out can be found on the settlement website at floodriskoakville.com.
Funding for the settlement is to be divided among the parties as follows:
- Town of Oakville - $300,000
- Halton Conservation Authority - $300,000
- Halton Region - $100,000
- Town of Milton - $150,000
- Province of Ontario - $150,000
Oakville mayor Rob Burton, the only individual named in the case, is to be dropped from the action and won’t be required to pay into the settlement.
Oakville lawyer Gary Will, who filed the action, said the parties negotiated a fair and reasonable deal, and it is in the best interests of the class (the affected property owners) to settle.
He added that the town and the Halton Conservation Authority “have adopted programs to continue to study flood risk within the Town of Oakville and that the Town of Oakville is contemplating the allocation of significant monies towards flood mitigation in the future.”
For these reasons, the representative plaintiff and class counsel believe that it is in the best interest of all Class Members to resolve this action, finally and completely, on the terms set out in the settlement agreement.”
The town did not respond to a request for comment before the Oakville News deadline.
Stormwater tax coming down the pipes
A rainwater management strategy presented to town council last summer acknowledged that the town is facing a $640 million challenge in maintaining its water-related infrastructure.
That’s the expected cost of caring for the town’s storm sewer pipes, culverts, creeks, shorelines, ponds, ditches and harbours over the next 30 years.
The strategy says that to keep up and catch up, Oakville will need to spend an average of $21.3 million every year. Some of the money will come from the town’s capital reserves, but at least $12 million more will be needed each year to cover costs over the coming decades.
That has the town considering a new stormwater tax to be levied against Oakville residents and businesses.
Details on that tax are expected in the coming months.
A 2021 report from the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices noted that flooding is currently the single largest cause of damage and loss to Canadian homes and buildings, with risks expected to increase dramatically due to climate change.
"As sea levels rise and rainfall increases, flood damage to homes and buildings could increase five fold in the next few decades and by a factor of ten by the end of the century, with costs as high as $13.6 billion annually," noted the independent, non-partisan organization of experts, in its report.
Updated, 3:15 p.m., April 15: An earlier version of this story incorrectly named lawyer Gary Will with the surname Hill. The correct name is now listed in the story above.