CVN letter to Council: Implementing BC Bills – OPPOSED – Transit Oriented Areas, Parking Bylaw, Housing Targets (25-Jun-2024 meeting)

Download formatted PDF version: Link here.

June 24, 2024
City of Vancouver

Dear Mayor Ken Sim and Councillors,

Re: Implementing BC Bills – Transit Oriented Areas, Parking Bylaw, Housing Targets
Agenda 2024-06-25 https://council.vancouver.ca/20240625/regu20240625ag.htm

Item 2. Housing Vancouver 10 Year Housing Targets and 3 Year Housing Action Plan
Report: https://council.vancouver.ca/20240625/documents/r2.pdf
Agenda 2024-06-26 https://council.vancouver.ca/20240626/cfsc20240626ag.htm

Item 1. Implementation of Transit-Oriented Areas (Provincial Housing Statute Bill 47)
Report: https://council.vancouver.ca/20240626/documents/cfsc1.pdf

Item 2. Updates to the Parking By-Law in Response to BC Bills and On-Street Pay Parking
Report https://council.vancouver.ca/20240626/documents/cfsc2.pdf

The Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods (CVN) strongly opposes the recommendations in these reports since they propose implementing the BC bills, even beyond provincial requirements, without ANY advanced public consultation process and only within days of posting online.

CVN has sent Council letters advising that we have many concerns regarding the new provincial legislation, Bills 44, 46 and 47, their very flawed biased undemocratic creation that was then pushed through the legislature, and how we find the current June 30, 2024 schedule for local and city-wide rezoning and implementation to be completely unrealistic. This schedule will neither allow for any legitimate public process, nor a proper infrastructure review. We requested that the City advise the Province that an extension is required, like other municipalities have done.

Housing Targets:

The City confirmed that Vancouver already exceeds the provincial five year targets based on the record number of developments currently in the pipeline. However, current market conditions have put many new already approved projects on hold, so there is no imminent pressure to inflate housing targets that will drive rezoning without proper planning or an infrastructure review.

The City of Vancouver is likely already exceeding infrastructure capacity. It is crucial that an infrastructure review be undertaken before increasing targets or adding more rezoning.

The greatest need is for more affordable housing that is not possible without major provincial and federal funding. There is abundant supply of expensive condos and rentals, well beyond market demand. The main need is for affordable units that are not being provided by the market.

Of further concern is there is no data of the existing zoned capacity, how much growth can be accommodated in existing zoning, and how much of this existing zoning could be affordable with the needed provincial and federal funding, since new market housing is too expensive to meet needs.

Why are industry groups consulted as stakeholders, and the legitimate community groups are not?

Implementing Bill 47 Transit Oriented Areas (TOAs):

The City is proposing to designate and approve Transit Oriented Areas (TOAs) citywide without any public consultation process in advance.

The report proposes increases in height and density beyond the provincial mandates and overriding community plans and area plans that will also be amended to comply along with this report or after the TOAs are approved.

There is no meaningful planning involved that considers the local context. It is just implementing large arbitrary circles around every station and bus loop for massive increases of tower development.

This includes amending the Grandview Community Plan, and other plans and policies, but the local community has had no consultation and most are not even aware this report is going to Council.

It also proposes Tier 2 for the Commercial Dr. station area to also be up to 20 storeys, so this is proposing much more 20 storey towers than any other station areas under the BC bills.

Onsite Parking Minimums Removed Citywide and Expanding Pay Parking:

This proposal is to eliminate all onsite minimum parking requirements, with maximums, in new construction for all uses citywide, including residential, hotel, commercial, and office developments. This goes way beyond the provincial mandates that only requires it for residential purposes in transit oriented areas.

Going forward, wherever developers choose to not put in adequate onsite parking, the surrounding areas will become so congested they will require on-street parking permits.

Over time, the parking permit fees are to align with market value of off-street parking like is mandated for the West End. Market value in the West End 2017 report is considered to be $50 per month or $600 per year. This significantly adds to the cost of living and is essentially a massive tax grab.

Vancouver residents made it clear in 2021 that they would not tolerate such a change.

Once again, we request that a proper planning process with public consultation, and an infrastructure review be conducted in advance.

Sincerely,
Co-Chairs Larry Benge & Dorothy Barkley
CVN Steering Committee,
Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods

Network Groups of the Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods
Arbutus Ridge Community Association
Cedar Cottage Area Neighbours
Dunbar Residents Association
Fairview/South Granville Action Committee
Grandview Woodland Area Council
Greater Yaletown Community Association
Kitsilano-Arbutus Residents Association
Kits Point Residents Association
NW Point Grey Home Owners Association
Oakridge Langara Area Residents
Residents Association Mount Pleasant
Riley Park/South Cambie Advisory Group
Shaughnessy Heights Property Owners Assoc.
Strathcona Residents Association
Upper Kitsilano Residents Association
West End Neighbours Society
West Kitsilano Residents Association
West Point Grey Residents Association
West Southland Residents Association