Breaking News: These 10 B.C. Municipalities Under Pressure to Achieve Housing Goals – Can They Handle the Heat?
B.C. government has released a list of 10 municipalities that will be required to meet housing targets or risk being overruled by the housing ministry. The selection of these municipalities was based on factors such as land availability, housing affordability, and potential for additional housing. The Housing Supply Act aims to incentivize compliance through a combination of rewards and consequences.
Key points:
- The 10 municipalities chosen to test out the new housing targets include:
- City of Abbotsford
- City of Delta
- City of Kamloops
- District North Vancouver
- District of Oak Bay
- City of Port Moody
- District of Saanich
- City of Vancouver
- City of Victoria
- District of West Vancouver
- Municipalities that achieve their housing targets will receive provincial funding for amenities such as parks, bike lanes, and recreation centres.
- Municipalities that fail to meet the targets face the possibility of having entire neighbourhoods rezoned to create more housing density.
- The selection process for the first 10 municipalities utilized a weighted index based on factors like the urgency of housing need, projected population growth, land availability, and housing affordability.
- The Housing Minister emphasized the need for all communities to address the housing crisis, whether they have embraced growth or resisted it.
- Some mayors, including Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim, expressed enthusiasm for the opportunity to test out the new housing targets and praised the provincial government’s leadership in increasing housing delivery.
- However, there are concerns from certain mayors, such as Oak Bay Mayor Kevin Murdoch, who worries that the plan may undermine municipal land-use planning and decision-making authority.
- The province plans to consult with the 10 municipalities over the summer to finalize the housing targets.
- Housing advocates and homebuilders welcomed the announcement, hoping that it will reduce barriers and expedite the development of affordable housing.
- An additional 10 municipalities will be added to the housing target list later this year.
- Premier David Eby has previously shown a willingness to override opposition to densification in order to address the housing crisis, and the government has plans to introduce measures to increase housing supply, including allowing for more “missing-middle” housing and implementing a flipping tax.
In summary, the B.C. government has identified 10 municipalities that must meet housing targets or risk intervention from the housing ministry. The selected municipalities vary in their attitudes towards growth, and the targets were determined based on factors like housing affordability and land availability. The government aims to incentivize compliance with funding for amenities, while also holding the power to rezone neighbourhoods to increase density. The announcement has received mixed reactions from mayors, but there is hope among housing advocates and homebuilders that the targets will expedite affordable housing development.
Above was a summary I read in a Global News article recently. Here’s a link to the original article for you. VANCOUVER SUN