due to disparate challenges. Sufficient funding for a variety of projects is lacking, particularly for non-profits who require equity. Wages are not keeping pace with housing costs. Sometimes housing that’s most needed isn’t being built; single-detached homes aren’t in short supply, while construction of units for singles or lowerwage earners languish on the back burner. “There’s a mismatch,” Basi notes.
The Trade-off: High or Wide? For those resistant to densification, the tradeoffs have to be made apparent. Eighty units could be built in a mid-rise with a smaller footprint than 80 units built as single-storey residences. But it’s not sustainable to grow outwards, Basi says. Clean air, proximity to transit and green spaces are all at risk. Diverse housing also needs to be built, she says. It could be modular housing shipped to a site, rental housing with an option to buy, high-rises or co-ops. As well, excessive or outdated rules and slow approval times, evidenced in many local municipalities, need to be overhauled. “Some regulations create obstacles. It’s time to revisit them, like zoning bylaws, some written in the 1970s,” Basi says. But ensuring safety and maintaining enforcement must not be sacrificed. Top-producing realtor Jason Leslie, a RE/
MAX Generation agent, thinks the housing landscape is finally shifting, not only due to Eby’s proposed changes, but because of a shifting market. When it costs $2,100 per month to rent a one-bedroom apartment, a person may as well buy a place to live. He’s aware of a Sidney property where 17 uberluxurious condos were planned, but the developer changed course. Now, 36 condos are on the drawing board, with a sub-$500,000 price tag. And instead of the troublesome 10 per cent or 20 per cent down payment, common with such projects, a flat $25,000 will secure a unit. With several big employers in the area (BC Ferries, Scott Plastics, the airport and the new Amazon warehouse), building truly affordable housing close to where the jobs are is a nobrainer, Leslie says. While no one from the provincial government was available to comment on what exactly it has planned, a prepared statement from the Ministry of Housing was provided. “The Housing Supply Act will help increase and speed up housing development by giving the Province the power to set housing targets in municipalities with the greatest need and highest projected growth. While all municipalities have a role and responsibility to make sure their local approvals processes enable
“Greater Victoria’s desirability draws a lot of people with wealth to an area bounded by water and mountains. The physical limitations, combined with demand from the well-off who can afford jacked-up prices, are very difficult to manage.” — Justin Young, Hillside Mall's Canadian Tire, owner
the creation of the homes people need, this legislation will apply to municipalities where the housing demand is the highest and where there is a gap between supply and demand,” the statement says. As Holden observes, all sectors have to get involved in creative solutions and partnerships. “We need to be really clear. It has to be the right supply for those who need it, to target different income groups.”
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