Densification needed to meet demand

Re: “Victoria’s densification process raises concerns,” comment, June 30. I have been a grateful resident of the Fairfield-Gonzales neighbourhood since July 1983, and I beg to differ with Michael Bloomfield’s NIMBY and raise-the-drawbridge attitude. This neighbourhood was first developed in the early 20th century, and has been growing and densifying ever since.

In the past 25 years, the increase in the number of secondary suites and the replacement of large singlefamily houses on large lots with more numerous smaller residential units was to respond to market demand from households with fewer or no children. The pace of densification might have increased in the past 10 years, but it has been well planned and managed by city hall with adequate public consultation and input.

The densification process is genuinely needed to compete with urban sprawl and conserve farmland. Densification is for the good of all of us. It reduces the unit cost of municipal services through economies of scale, and the total cost of these services is shared by a greater number of households.

As for traffic and parking problems, let’s be serious. There is no shortage of on-street parking in Fairfield-Gonzales. Also, there is still lots of capacity on our city streets to accommodate a large increase in trips whether they be by car, bicycle or bus. Richard Voyer Victoria