City of Kitchener advancing Water Allocation Policy to support housing and growth

The City of Kitchener is advancing the development of a Water Allocation Policy to manage limited water supply capacity while continuing to support housing and economic growth. 

The City is working closely with the Region of Waterloo, area municipalities and partners in the building and development industry to refine the policy and ensure it reflects shared priorities and practical considerations. This work is grounded in careful stewardship of our water resources and follows Regional Council’s recent approvals of an Interim Risk Management Framework and a Regional water allocation policy that provides “buckets” of water capacity to municipalities. 

The City’s new policy will establish a clear and transparent framework to guide how available water capacity is allocated across development projects. It is intended to prioritize projects that deliver the greatest community benefit, including new housing - particularly affordable housing – essential services, and economic development. 

The framework will consider factors such as community need, infrastructure capacity, environmental impacts, and project readiness to support fair and consistent decision-making. 

“Kitchener continues to meet the economic and housing demands of our community, and this work will help ensure we are managing limited water capacity in a responsible, transparent, and strategic way,” said Mayor Berry Vrbanovic. “At the same time, we remain focused on delivering more housing and supporting our local economy. This policy will help us prioritize projects that are ready to move forward and that provide the greatest benefit to our community, while making sure we are planning for sustainable growth over the long term.” 

Kitchener remains Open For Business. The City has continued to review and approve development applications on a case-by-case basis, so projects are positioned to move forward as soon as water capacity becomes available. 

A draft of the Policy may be viewed online at Kitchener.ca/PlanningApplications (search word “water”). 

The finalized policy is expected to be brought forward later this month and will be activated as soon as the Region allocates water to municipalities pending approval at a regional council meeting on June 17, 2026.