Let’s Fix Housing – 3 point plan – First off let’s agree this is a problem we can fix. With our wealth we can keep Vancouver open and welcoming as well as build the houses we need.
An end to the slow and wasteful piecemeal, building-by-building rezoning that comes before city council. This will be replaced by a citywide plan that pre-zones areas for middleclass families and economic development. This will remove speculation caused by scarcity, allow home builders to know the rules and give residents price and market certainty. This change will also take the politicians out of the approval process and reduce spending on wasted staff time and resources.
The city will work to streamline the building approval process, to speed construction of new homes and move housing units to market faster. This will include the ability to prioritize social and family housing and include digital advances in permitting. City Hall will be a partnering in getting middleclass projects approved and built. The city will also utilize 99 year leases to leverage city owned land to add the scale of affordable homes we need.
The city will move to utilize 99 year leases on City owned land and partner with homebuilders and service providers to leverage development on city owned lands to add social and middle class housing the private sector market won’t build. In addition the city will bonus density for rental project and work with other levels of government to create a third sector of affordable middle class market and rental housing throughout the city. Additionally, we will eliminate the red tape and high fees that prevent middleclass housing options, particularly rental, from being built.
