Qs FROM CONSTITUENTS: PROPERTY & ZONING

This blog series explores some of the questions I have been asked by Grey Highlands' constituents. This post reviews the questions asked of all candidates at the Kimberley All Candidates Meeting on Oct 5, 2022.

The following posts originated from questions from the Kimberley Community Association (KCA) Debate.

The following are the question topics:

• Environment & Talisman

• Safe & Healthy Communities

• Transparency, Communication, and Staff Roles

• Property and Zoning

Property and Zoning

As our elected representative, what do you see as the top three (3) tools that Council has to encourage the development of affordable and attainable housing, and, what do you see as impediments, if any, to those tools?

Everyone deserves a home they can afford, where they want to live. We are in a housing crisis, and we need to think outside of the box to provide attainable and affordable housing including more housing choices through expanded zoning options, gentle density via infilling with smart growth. Governments of the past paved over prime agriculture, let's not make the same mistake in Grey Highlands.

My priorities for managing and planning for this anticipated growth is density where density belongs, and that is where there are existing services. Housing is more affordable where most of the infrastructure investments have already been made.

Grey Highlands has implemented some very forward policy changes in the past four years aimed at supporting attainable housing, for example, this Council removed the minimum building size for a single family dwelling, started the process by requesting a Staff Report on amending the Grey Highlands zoning by-law to eliminate or reduce the minimum square footage of a single family dwelling in a residential zone and removed development charges on Secondary Dwelling Units (SDUs), allowed a duplex or triplex by way of right in serviced areas and have supported a review of minimum parking requirements in built-up areas.

As your mayor, I will:

• Encourage infilling within existing in-catchment boundaries that are currently serviced.

• Support secondary dwelling units (SDU), as well as an analysis of increasing the number of units.

• Support tiny homes on temporarily leased land. (At the County level, Temporary Land Leases are being explored as a way to help support tiny home development; this solves the high cost of land, it does not solve the high cost of hooking into services.)

• Support partnerships to get truly affordable homes built.

• Support a review of minimum parking requirements.

See my post, Running for Mayor: Smart Growth for more details.

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See all the questions I have been asked throughout the 2022 Campaign!