Two qathet Regional District directors have expressed concerns about correspondence from minister of housing and municipal affairs Ravi Kahlon regarding small-scale multi-unit housing (SSMUH).
At the June 24 planning committee meeting, Electoral Area B director Mark Gisborne said the correspondence from Kahlon, regarding the one-year anniversary of SSMUH requirements, is not surprising.
“The language that was coming from the ministry of housing a number of years ago was indicating that they were getting ready to wind up to take a swing at local governments in their zoning bylaws and they did that with Bills 44 and 46,” said Gisborne. “Reading this letter, it says it’s the one-year anniversary from when we were required to make these changes.
“The third paragraph-starts with: ‘However, monitoring has also identified ongoing barriers.’ What I’m hearing is the province saying: ‘Maybe we didn’t do enough.’ That has me concerned because we have Bill 44 and 46 come at us. It was very short notice and a lot of folks didn’t know what it meant.”
Gisborne said he wanted to flag the correspondence. He said he believes that local governments might have another Bill 44 and 46 on its hands, and this time, the province might take a swing at rural areas that aren’t connected to municipal water and sewer systems.
“I wanted to pull that [correspondence] because I have been pushing for changes to the Nootka Street zoning bylaw, and I am also strongly considering changes to Traff Road and Myrtle Pond, which is in Area B as well,” said Gisborne. “I am going to try and have that ready for next month’s planning committee. This concerns me.”
Electoral Area A director and committee chair Jason Lennox said he found the letter to be interesting.
“It is quite chastising,” said Lennox.
He indicated that he is sure staff have had the chance to peruse the correspondence. He asked if staff could tell the committee where the regional district stands.
General manager of planning services Laura Roddan said her read of the correspondence is that it has no impact on qathet Regional District because bylaws are already aligned with the provincial requirements. She said there was a staff report on April 3, 2024, that reviewed the new provincial legislation and the requirements under the SSMUH provincial policy manual and site standards. She said all the bylaws are compliant with the requirements.
Roddan said it appeared that the letter applied to municipalities with populations greater than 5,000 people, which are subject to the higher density requirements.
Kahlon, in his correspondence, stated: “People in our province need the greater diversity of housing that these changes are designed to unlock, and our government has a responsibility to act where these needs remain unmet. If all local governments do not align with the guidelines and intent of the legislation, it is my intention to continue to strengthen the legislated requirements to ensure more consistent standards are established across the province. Greater alignment with the requirements and guidelines will help encourage SSMUH development and increase the supply of the homes that people in our communities need, and moving forward in earnest now will minimize your future work to align with any forthcoming legislative changes.”
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