Will a Housing Action Plan now in the works in Delta be filled with ideas residents have heard before or will there be recommendations that lead to substantive action?
Former councillor Scott Hamilton hopes it will be the latter as the city conducts a housing needs assessment, which will be followed by the writing of an action plan.
Hamilton chaired a housing task force a decade ago that explored housing challenges and came up with recommendations, several of which, including allowing secondary suites, were approved by Delta council.
He said since then things have changed, including single-family housing becoming even more unaffordable, promoting the need for a plan that will identify specific areas that should be targeted for higher-density housing.
“I knew back then that we were going to have our limitations because attitudes weren’t what they are now. I think there’s been significant change in mindset when it comes to issues around density. Ten years is a long time and even for me, back then, I wouldn’t have thought about moving into a townhouse, but now I’m thinking about it, but I’d like to stay in my community. So, I think the timing is perfect to review this plan and really do something substantial when it comes to affordability and accessibility,” he said.
Hamilton, who served a term as Delta North MLA after leaving council, said what many residents opposed to high-density don’t realize is that community plans are “living documents” and not a set of rigid policies set for an indefinite period.
“I can’t even count the number of people I’ve known in Delta for so many years that tell me they’ve got nowhere to go. They want to stay in their community but they’re stuck in their big houses. It’s the same thing you heard years ago, but it’s more now. But housing, I know, is a difficult thing to govern because there’s so many different opinions and a lot of people don’t like change.”
Hamilton, who is a consultant for the owner of the vacant North Delta Inn site where a preliminary development plan will be available for public viewing by mid-September, said while attitudes on council seem to have changed when it comes to new forms of higher density to meet the needs of young homebuyers and downsizers, he’d like to see more areas clearly defined for such projects.
“We’ve been so far behind the curve when it comes to developing this community,” he added.
Coun. Dylan Kruger, who in his 20s is the youngest member of city council, told the Optimist he doesn’t expect a street-by-street breakdown in the new plan, saying that would be more common in a land use plan.
He noted the city’s biggest problem is the fact roughly 80 per cent of the housing stock remains detached homes, causing young families to go elsewhere, while at the same time there’s not enough density in town centres to sustain businesses.
“What we don’t need are more $2-million dollar luxury single detached homes. We need to approve more of the missing middle -- townhomes, condos and market rentals -- to create housing options for young families and seniors who would like to stay in our community. We also need to work with our service providers like KinVillage and entities like B.C. Housing to create the needed below-market options for our most vulnerable citizens,” said Kruger.
Focusing “smart density” in town centres is a good start, he said.
“I’m looking for strong recommendations to help incentivize this needed growth. Metro Vancouver will be experiencing a 30 per cent drop in housing starts over the next few years, just when we need new supply the most. It’s all well and good to say we want more housing or we want smart density, but builders won’t take these projects on unless they are profitable,” he added.
“We are in the middle of a housing crisis (and) in times of crisis, bold action is required. If we wait another 20 years to build the types of housing we need today, there will be no families left in our community.”
