Housing debate delayed so public can review 2,000 pages of detail
The City of Victoria will give the public another week to digest the ream of material available on its missing-middle housing initiatives as the committee of the whole voted Thursday to postpone fulsome discussion of the topic.
The committee had been expected to debate delegating to staff the authority to approve permits for some development projects and changing bylaws and land-use regulations to allow new forms of housing. But Coun. Sharmarke Dubow called for it to be set aside.
Dubow’s motion was initially accepted, but Coun. Jeremy Loveday, who voted against postponing, asked to have the postponement reconsidered.
After a brief recess, plenty of confusion around the committee room and discussion with legal advisers, the committee decided to take in the staff report on missing-middle housing this week and delay until next Thursday the fulsome discussion of amendments and motions.
“There’s a willingness to hear from staff today, but we would like another week to hear from the public before we embark on any substantive debate on any recommendations in relation to this item,” said Coun. Ben Isitt.
“I think giving our public another week to digest the materials and communicate their views to us is reasonable.”
Dubow said it not only gives the public time to review the 2,000 pages of information available, but it would allow council to “really think about and make an informed decision.”
The idea behind the missing middle housing project is to increase the number of housing options in Victoria to allow families to stay in the city, reduce dependency on cars while ensuring new housing developments suit the character of neighbourhoods and preserve heritage.
A city staff report suggests that could be done by amending bylaws, land-use procedures and official community plans to permit infill, house plexes and corner townhouses in some neighbourhoods.
They also recommend allowing staff to approve permits for projects that comply with all design guidelines and zoning, cutting down the time it takes to build and reducing costs that could translate into less expensive housing options.
The city has already accelerated the process for qualifying affordable housing projects, which is expected to trim as much as nine months, and an estimated $2 million, off a typical project.
In the report tabled Thursday, city staff said an extensive engagement process showed strong support for a streamlined process to approve houseplexes, townhouses and heritage conserving infill. Only eight per cent of respondents indicated that none of the housing forms should follow a delegated development permit process.
The report also suggests missing-middle housing design guidelines and the streamlined approval process would apply in all traditional residential areas in Victoria. The guidelines would require a certain amount of parking. Where that couldn’t be achieved due to the size or layout of the lot, developers would be expected to provide transportation substitutions such as car-share co-op memberships and transit passes.
Information for the public is available at Victoria.ca under “council and committee meetings.”