West Vancouver put on notice by housing minister

B.C.’s housing minister says the District of West Vancouver has 30 days to align with provincial legislation aimed at increasing small-scale multi-unit (SSMU) builds.

On Thursday, Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon said the legislation aimed at fixing outdated zoning rules had been adopted by almost 90 per cent of communities. SSMU housing includes row homes, triplexes, and townhouses.

Out of 188 municipal governments, 162 have adopted the SSMU legislation through local bylaws, the province said, adding another nine are “actively working to adopt the legislation.”

“We will be reviewing these bylaws to ensure that more triplexes, fourplexes, and townhomes can be built,” Kahlon said on X.

“We know these types of homes have the lowest impact on our existing infrastructure AND create new opportunities for people to live in the communities they love.”

However, he says the District of West Vancouver “rejected passing bylaw amendments.” The province warns the community, which is “currently not in compliance” with the housing legislation, will now have about a month to make necessary changes or else “a ministerial order could be issued.”

One real estate developer isn’t surprised that some municipalities are not falling in line.

“There are a lot of complicated factors that come into allowing for more housing, including existing neighbourhoods and infrastructure. And there are cities that are more welcoming to change and there are cities that have been looking to slow down the growth,” said Bill Laidler, president, Laidler Real Estate Development and Academy.

He says, as a developer, his company does see the value of some neighbourhoods sticking to single-family character and changing others to be more multi-family developments.

“The key is we’re moving away from significantly the majority of Metro Vancouver being single-family zoning to now a majority of Metro Vancouver allowing for multi-family zoning. It’s not perfect, we haven’t changed the zoning for 100 per cent of the properties. This is a significantly forward and great opportunity for a lot more families to have more housing options,” Laidler explained.

“Change creates uncertainty and the unknowns. When we have residents … who have lived in neighbourhoods for a long period of time, seeing our roads and infrastructure not being upgraded at the same time as the regulation changes, it creates questions on how life will be after these new townhomes are constrcuted. So I think it’s fair and it’s normal that there is that concern about what life will be like after these housing changes. But, ultimately, if you look at the benefit of having more family-oriented housing … it’s going to be a net-benefit for our communities.”

The B.C. government explains that SSMU housing “creates more options for the kinds of housing people are looking for.”

As part of B.C.’s Homes for People plan, the SSMU legislation was passed in November 2023. A month later, the province says local governments were provided with regulations and policy manuals to support them in the implementation of new rules, “with a deadline for local governments to amend local bylaws by June 30, 2024.”

Two B.C. communities — the District of Wells and the Northern Rockies Regional Municipality — have been given extensions due to wildfire impacts.

-With files from Michael Williams