At their regular meeting on December 15th Council gave first and second readings to the bylaws that would implement two Housing Accelerator Fund initiatives: the Townhouse Program, and the Affordable Housing Accelerator. In February 2024, the City was awarded an $11.4 million grant from the Housing Accelerator Fund program established by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This report outlines amendments proposed to Official Community Plan (OCP) and Zoning Bylaw to implement two of the grant-funded programs: the Townhouse Program, and a component of the Affordable Housing Accelerator.  

This report is presented in two Sections:  

1. Townhouse Program: To increase the number of new townhouse projects, this program has explored expanding the townhouse land use designation in the OCP to more areas of the city, pre-zoning lands for townhouses, and making regulatory and policy improvements such as allowing larger townhouse units. Based on analysis and community engagement, approximately 900 properties are recommended to be designated in the OCP. Of these, approximately 570 are being considered for pre-zoning, meaning that a rezoning application would not be required to build townhouses on these lots.  
2. Affordable Housing Accelerator: The Affordable Housing Accelerator initiative aims to reduce regulatory barriers, streamline approval processes, and unlock more opportunities for affordable housing projects of up to six storeys that are entirely owned and operated by registered non-profit rental housing providers or housing co-ops. The proposed OCP update would implement a next phase of the Initiative, which proposes allowing non-profit affordable rental housing of up to six storeys to be built on properties designated to permit a townhouse. This would be conditional on the property being owned and operated by the registered provider, and on the project’s long term affordability and rental tenure being secured through a legal agreement. 

Additional information can be found in the full report by City staff.