[Drybrain]

Ha--I helped to edit that piece. (I worked at The Grid before it bellyflopped into oblivion last year like the rest of the print-media world).

But yeah, you're right that section 37 funds stay in the wards they're in. This actually can be detrimental, however--in Toronto, the city has been somewhat too reliant on section 37 funds to pay for basic stuff. Adam Vaughan's ward is one of the wealthiest wards in the city, and also home to a a disproportionate amount of the city's large developments. Which mean this his ward was raking in huge amounts section 37 cash, while wards in which residents were struggling to get basic services met got almost nothing. So it's not a perfect solution--it has the potential to exacerbate existing social inequalities within the city.

I think if the developer is providing a tangible benefit--streetscaping, public art, a playground, etc--in exchange for added density or a variance of some kind, it's logical to put that in the community affected.

But when it's cash, I think it makes sense to put it in a general pool for use city-wide. Otherwise you end up in a situation where there's a ridiculous amount of money to spend in one or two areas that are really popular with developers, and the you only have crumbs for other areas. We are all one city, after all.