Land Value Capture for Social Benefits: Comparing Toronto and São Paulo

Land value capture (LVC) is popular around the world as a way to pay for public infrastructure. LVCs can also be used for social benefits. IMFG Post-Doctoral Fellow Abigail Friendly compared the use of LVC in two cities –  São Paulo and Toronto – with a focus on acquiring local benefits and services such as park improvements, childcare and recreational facilities, and social housing. São Paulo’s outorga onerosa do direito de construir (OODC) is a bureaucratized approach, compared to the politicized process in Toronto’s Section 37 legislation. These contrasting policies offer an opportunity to think about how to improve the experience in both places.

Abigail Friendly is IMFG’s Post-Doctoral Fellow for 2015-2016. She has a PhD in Planning from the University of Toronto.