It’s time to welcome the fourplex next door

It’s likely most Ontarians feel similarly to the premier when it comes to allowing fourplexes in established neighbourhoods.

“You go into the middle of communities and start putting up fourstorey, six-storey, eight-storey buildings deep in the communities, that’s a massive mistake. It’s off the table for us,” Premier Doug Ford told reporters recently. “We’re going to build homes, single-dwelling homes, townhomes. That’s what we’re going to focus on.”

Many of us in Ontario grew up in neighbourhoods full of single family, detached homes, and we likely live in a similar neighbourhood today. So, naturally, the idea of such dramatic change can be a little unsettling.

However, the change won’t be anywhere near as dramatic as the premier makes it sound.

In Kitchener, for example, council has just approved planning changes that will permit “up to four dwelling units on any lot that allows a single-detached dwelling, semi-detached dwelling or street fronting townhouse dwelling.” But contrary to Ford’s “four-storey, six-storey, eight-storey” claim, in Kitchener, the four dwelling units will be built to a maximum height of three storeys.

It’s also worth noting Kitchener has been allowing three units per lot since 2021 and only a few dozen applications taking advantage of the new density have been received. So, it’s not like the neighbourhoods we see today are going to be transformed overnight into neighbourhoods full of fourplexes.

Something else to bear in mind is that this sort of “gentle density” already exists in neighbourhoods across our community.

While out walking the dog the other day, I noticed the sixplex on the corner. I’ve probably walked past it dozens of times but, with all the focus on housing these days, I was more observant this time.

The sixplex stood on the corner of a tree-lined residential street, surrounded by modest, two-storey family homes. The multi-unit building was only marginally taller than the family homes next door and there was nothing about it that seemed out of place — or out of character — for the neighbourhood.

As I paid close attention throughout my walk, I stopped counting when I got into the double-digits. That’s how many similar small apartments or other homes converted into multi-unit dwellings I saw within about a 10-block radius of my traditional, detached bungalow.

All of this is to say that we’ve been adding density to our neighbourhoods for years.

Can we add more? Bluntly, we must. A just-announced federal housing plan pledges to build almost 3.9 million homes across the country by 2031. These ambitious plans will surely change the neighbourhoods we’ve grown up with, and that’s entirely the point. These new neighbourhoods are not so much for us as they’re for our kids, who are ready for different housing options.

These ambitious plans will surely change the neighbourhoods we’ve grown up with, and that’s entirely the point