TOWN OF VIEW ROYAL COUNCIL REPORT - PROVINCIAL HOUSING LEGISLATION WORKPLAN
Report providing an analysis and workplan for implementing new provincial housing legislation (Bills 35, 44, 46, and 47).
TOWN OF VIEW ROYAL COUNCIL REPORT
TO: Council
DATE: January 7, 2024
FROM: Leanne Taylor, MCIP, RPP, Director of Development Services
MEETING DATE: January 16, 2024
PROVINCIAL HOUSING LEGISLATION (BILL 35-2023, BILL 44-2023, BILL 46-2023 AND BILL 47-2023) – 2024/2025 WORKPLAN
RECOMMENDATION:
THAT the Draft 2024-2028 Financial Plan include pre-approval for expenditures up to $37,500.00 funded from the Homes for People grant to support the immediate commencement of work on updates to the Zoning Bylaw and Official Community Plan, and the Interim Housing Needs Report, as required by Provincial Bill 44-2023 and Bill 47-2023.
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this report is to present Council with information and analysis on the recent Provincial housing legislation regarding short-term rentals, small-scale multi-unit housing (i.e., secondary suites, detached accessory dwelling units (ADUs), such as garden suites, duplexes, triplexes, houseplexes, townhouses, etc.), transit-oriented areas, and financial tools. In addition, this report will present a proposed workplan to be carried out by the Development Services Department with specific tasks and timelines mandated by the Province in order to implement the required housing initiatives.
TIME CRITICAL:
This report is time critical as there are specific initiatives that must be completed by June 30, 2024, December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2025.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
In October and November 2023, the Province adopted the following housing legislation that requires most local governments in British Columbia to make significant changes to zoning bylaws and Official Community Plans, establish an interim Housing Needs Report and streamline development approval processes to increase the supply of housing:
- Bill 35 – 2023 Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act
- Bill 44 – 2023 Housing Statutes (Residential Development) Amendment Act (i.e., Small-Scale, Multi-Unit Housing)
- Bill 46 – 2023 Housing Statutes (Financing Tools) Amendment Act (i.e., Amenity Cost Charges and Development Cost Charges Bylaws)
- Bill 47 – 2023 Housing Statutes (Transit-Oriented Areas) Amendment Act.
The Town’s opportunity to seek community input on the required zoning bylaw changes is limited to informing the public under Bill 44 and Bill 47. However, the Town may have some discretion on specific zoning criteria for small scale multi-unit housing and higher density residential and mixed-use development within the transit-oriented area, which would allow for testing of different zoning scenarios (i.e., lot sizes, setbacks, lot coverage etc.). In this case, there may be an opportunity to lead some community engagement on zoning bylaw changes provided that it meets the intent of the new housing legislation. There would be opportunities for extensive community engagement on the updates to the Official Community Plan, in accordance with the legislation.
The Province has established an ambitious timeline to implement the legislative requirements over the next two years, which will impact the ability for Development Services staff to undertake and work on other Council priorities and initiatives that would require substantial staff time and resources. This report presents a staff workplan and requests immediate allocation of grant funding in order to meet the Provincial deadlines, which are as follows:
- June 30, 2024 – Local governments must have updated bylaws to accommodate small-scale, multi-unit housing
- December 31, 2024 – Local governments must have completed interim housing needs assessments
- December 31, 2025 – Updated Official Community Plans and Zoning Bylaws are complete.
BACKGROUND:
Bill 35 – 2023 Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act
Many local governments, including the Town, have taken action to regulate short-term rentals to address the current housing crisis and shortage of long-term rental housing. However, municipalities with short-term rental bylaws have expressed challenges associated with bylaw enforcement and requested more tools and resources to deal with non-compliant short-term rentals. In response to this feedback, the Province adopted Bill 35 – 2023 Short-Term Rental Accommodations Act for the purposes of:
- giving local governments stronger tools to enforce short-term rental bylaws
- returning short-term rental units to the long-term housing market
- establishing a new Provincial role in the regulation of short-term rentals.
Document Images
(1)