Vancouver City Council

POLICY REPORT
DEVELOPMENT AND BUILDING

Date: January 13, 2003
Author/Local: C. Gray/7207
RTS No. 02999
CC File No. 113

Council: January 28, 2003

TO:

Vancouver City Council

FROM:

Director of the Housing Centre, in consultation with the Director of Current Planning

SUBJECT:

Replacing "Non-Market Housing" with "Affordable Housing" in the False Creek North ODP and CD-1 By-laws, the Coal Harbour ODP and CD-1 By-laws, and the Bayshore Gardens and CityGate CD-1 Bylaws

RECOMMENDATION

THAT the Director of Current Planning be instructed to make application to amend the False Creek North ODP, the Coal Harbour ODP, the CD-1 By-laws for sites located within these ODPs, the CD-1 By-law for CityGate and the CD-1 By-law for Bayshore Gardens to replace all occurrences of "non-market housing" with "affordable housing" generally in accordance with Appendix A, and that the application be referred to a Public Hearing;

FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare the necessary amending by-law(s) for consideration at the Public Hearing.

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.

COUNCIL POLICY

Council requires that 20% of the units in new neighbourhoods be designated for non-market housing, with a priority for core-need (low and modest income) households. Council policy is to consider housing proposals not subsidized through senior government programs, or payment-in-lieu, if senior government funding for non-market housing is not available. The zoning for new neighbourhoods allows Council to define non-market housing and approve such housing initiatives as circumstances require.

BACKGROUND

In 1988, City Council implemented a policy of requiring that 20% of the units in the new neighbourhoods around False Creek be designated for non-market housing. Since then the policy has been applied to developments along the Fraser River, Coal Harbour and elsewhere in the city. A capacity of 2572 units has been created of which half (1256 units) has been funded. The policy requires that the developers of the new neighbourhoods make sites available at a price that allows non-market housing to be developed within the maximum budgets permitted by the senior government housing programs.

On April 10, 2001, Council instructed the Director of the Housing Centre to initiate amendments to the Official Development Plans (ODPs) and Comprehensive Development By-laws (CD-1s) for the new neighbourhoods in which sites have been set aside for non-market housing. The amendments would replace the term "non-market housing" with "affordable housing" in the relevant ODPs and CD-1s.

The term "non-market housing" is not defined in the ODPs and CD-1s. While undertaking the legal review for a recent non-market housing project, the solicitors acting for BC Housing expressed a concern that "non-market housing" could be misinterpreted to mean that every unit in a non-market housing project had to be rented at below market rents and only core-need households could be accommodated. Core-need households are the City's priorities, but almost all of the non-market housing developed in the City's new neighbourhoods accommodates a mix of incomes, typically 60% core-need households and 40% paying market rent. This ensures a social mix within the project as well as within the neighbourhood. Consequently, BC Housing asked the City to define or replace "non-market housing" to eliminate any misinterpretation.

REPLACING "NON-MARKET HOUSING" WITH "AFFORDABLE HOUSING"
It is recommended that all occurrences of the term "non-market housing" in the relevant ODP and CD-1 By-laws be replaced with "affordable housing". "Affordable housing" is a term
that the Province inserted into the Vancouver Charter in 1997 (561(3), 565.1 and 565.2). Those sections require Council to address "Affordable Housing" in any development by-laws and empower City Council to negotiate the provision of affordable housing with developersseeking rezonings. "Affordable housing" is not defined in the Vancouver Charter. The Charter allows City Council to consider affordability in the context of a particular proposal. This is appropriate given the changing context of senior government housing programs and the relative nature of affordability.

Replacing "non-market housing" with "affordable housing" will not alter the City's priorities or the range of projects the City has considered in the past or may wish to consider in the future. It does not change the purpose of the City's policy of requiring that 20% of the units in new neighbourhoods be developed for non-market housing, which is to ensure that there are opportunities for low and modest income households to live in the new neighbourhoods. The priority will continue to be housing for core-need households, and non-profit rental or co-operative housing projects, most of which include both subsidized and market units. All that replacing "non-market housing" with "affordable housing" does is eliminate the possible confusion identified by BC Housing's solicitors, and bring the terminology used in the ODP and CD-1 Bylaws in line with the terminology used in the Vancouver Charter.

AMENDMENTS TO ODPs AND CD-1s

It is recommended that all occurrences of "non-market housing" be replaced by "affordable housing" in the following ODPs and CD-1s:

False Creek North Official Development Plan, By-law No. 6650;
CD-1 (265) for International Village, By-law No. 6747;
CD-1 (266) forYaletown Edge, By-law No. 6757;
CD-1 (297) for Roundhouse, By-law. No. 7156;
CD-1 (324) for Quayside, By-law No. 7248;
CD-1 (366) for Beach East, By-law No- 7675;
CD-1 (399) for Beach West, By-law No. 8109;
Coal Harbour Official Development Plan, By-law No. 6754;
CD-1 (312) for Marina, By-law No. 7200;
CD-1 (399) for Harbour Green, By-law No. 7681;
CD-1 (321) for Bayshore Gardens, By-law No. 7232; and
CD-1 (264) for CityGate, By-law No. 6744.

Appendix A sets out the general wording of the amendments, noting that there may be appropriate variations to the specific wording for each by-law.

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APPENDIX A

CD-1 Amendment

A minimum of x percent of the total number of units shall be provided through government funded programs targeted for core-need households or such ~~non-market~~ affordable housing programs or initiatives as Council may generally define or specifically approve, and which housing programs or initiatives may include both subsidized and market rental units.

ODP Amendment

x percent of the total number of dwelling units shall be designated for ~~non-market~~ affordable housing, with priority on housing for core-need households, with fifty percent of the ~~non-market~~ affordable units to be suitable for households with children. The ~~non-market~~ affordable units shall be integrated into each residential are, except that Council may permit alternate arrangements to provide some ~~non-market~~ affordable units off site, and Council may also permit affordable housing programs or initiatives to include both subsidized and market rental units.

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TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	Director of the Housing Centre, in consultation with the Director of Current Planning
SUBJECT:	Replacing "Non-Market Housing" with "Affordable Housing" in the False Creek North ODP and CD-1 By-laws, the Coal Harbour ODP and CD-1 By-laws, and the Bayshore Gardens and CityGate CD-1 Bylaws